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THE REPUBLIC;
A HISTORY
UNITED STATES OF AMERIQ
THE ADMINISTRATIONS,
From xhb Mona.rchio Col-oniai. Davs
TO THH Phksbnt TiMSa.
JOHN ROBERT IRELAN. M D.
IN B'lOHXBBN VOL.UNdBS.
Volume XVn.
CHICAGO:
F'AIRBANKS and RAI.I<;1SR F*UBI.tSHINO Co.
BcHTOH : Maktin Gariiisoh jk Co. Nbw Youe : John Cummihgi.
WAialMGTON, D. C: W. F. UoiIh. Cincinnati : The Cincinnati Puilishins Co.
St. Lova: E. HoLtowAV. Minhbai«lis: Bucickvk Puilishing Co.
San Francisco: J. Dbwihq & Co.
1888.
ov Google
COPYRIGHTED
BY Ii. T. PALMKBt.
iLL RIQHTS HESERVED
ov Google
HISTORY
LIFE, ADMINISTRATION,
AND TIMES
Abraham Lincoln,
jllvtaanfh |fc*«it>«nt of th* Wnltab Jltatv*.
War of the Rebellion.
Downfall of Human Slaverj:
JOHN ROBERT IRELAN. M. D.
IN TWO VOLUMES.
Volume II.
CHICAGO:
Fairbanks and Palnisr Publishing Co,
ov Google
COPYRIGHTED
BY b. T. PA.I.NIBR,
1888.
kll RIGBTS RSSBftVED.
ovGoo'^lc
CONTENTS.
CHAPTER 1. p^oB.
1861 — Wab op the Resexlion — Big Bethel — BtrrLEtt
AND Wool — Scorr'a Plan — Pattekbon m Vir-
ginia— " Oh to Ricbhomd" — General McDowell —
First Bull Run — Lobb of the First Great Battle
FOR THE Union — "Fobward to WABHraoTON" —
COBBECTINO EbBORS 9
CHAPTER n.
1861 — War of the Rebellion — " Thiett-beventh
Congress" — Extra Session — Mr. Lincoln's First
Message — Personal Libertt — Habeas Corpus —
Bights of the Govbrnhent 29
CHAPTER m.
1861 — War of the Rebellion — " Thirty-setesth
Congress" — Extra Session — A Few Names in the
"REAR-QtfARD" — POLITICAL GeNERALS — ThE
Negro, bis Reugion — "Contraband of War" —
The Aduinibtration and the Army dealino wrra
Slavery — General Butler 52
CHAPTER rv.
1861 — War of the Rebellion — Progress of the
Rebels at Home and Abroad — McClellan at
THE Head of the Union Arbit — "All Quiet on the
. Potomac " — RoeECHANS in West Virginia — Lyon
AHD Fremont in Missouri — Battle of Wilson's
Cbbek— The Bodt-odabd 78
(3)
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CHAPTER V. p^^^
1861 — Wab of the Rebeluok — Battle of Pea
RiDOE — Belmont and Columbus — Grant and
Halleck — FoKT Henb¥ — Fort Donelson — Mill
Spbinqs — Ball's Bluff — The Navy — A General
View — England — Bubnside is North Carolina . 102
CHAPTER VI.
ConaREBB IN FiBaT Requlab Session under Mb.
Lincoln — First Annual Messaqe — Folly op
" Habeas Corpus " — Mabtial Law — The Chief
Justice 127
CHAPTER VII.
1862 — Wab of the Rebeluon — Congress in the
Winter op 1861 — Proposition to the Bobder
Slave States — The Confiscation Act — Eman-
cipation IN THE DiSTBICT — A GrAND MorAL
PioruRB 160
CHAPTER Vm.
1862— War op the Rebellion — The Trent Case —
Foreiqh Affairs — The Hand of Old England —
Course of the " Ruling Class" — The Triple Al-
liance— America and the Monroe Doctrine to
be crushed — Maximilian — ^Time, the Avenger . 177
CHAPTER IX.
1862 — 1863 — War of the Rebellion — Finance — The
Greenback — Mr. Chase — Politics, Elections,
Draft-riots — Great Battle of the Rebellion
POCOHT AT THE NORTH — ^ThE NEWSPAPERS — Mr. •
Lincoln and the Aiders and Abettors — "Un-
constitutional" becomes a By-wobd . .200
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C0NTEHT8. , 5
CHAPTER X. Pxo«.
1862 — Wab op the Rebelltom — The DEVELonraNT
OP EMAHCiPATtoH — The Emawoipation Phoclaua-
Tioir — Mb. Ldfcout and his Deed .... 229
CHAPTER XI.
1862 — War of the Rebellion — Conqsesb ra the Win-
tee OP 1862 — Second Anntjal Mebbaoe — West
ViHOHnA — Ah Errob 256
CHAPTER Xn.
1862— W AH OF the Rebellion— Island No. 10— Gen-
eral Pope — New Orleans — General Bdtler —
Farraodt and his Flotilla — Shiloh — Corinth —
Pbebttille — Stone River — Where stood the
God of Battles 282 .
CHAPTER Xm.
1862^— War op the Rebellion — On the Potomac —
Battle of the Iron-clads — Lincoln ^nd Mc-
ClBLLAH — WiLLIAHSBURa — INHARMONIOUS RsBEia . 307
CHAPTER XIV.
1862 — War of the Rebellion — Rebel Stjccbssbb in
THE Shenandoah Valley — McClellan on the
" PENiueDLA" — Seven Pines — The Chickahohiht —
Sbteh DAYrf Battle 328
CHAPTER XV.
1862 — War op the Rebeixion — McClellan at Hab-
■ bison's Landing — Evacuation of the Peninsula — . -
LiNCOLH AND McOlELLAN — An INDEFENSIBLE CA-
REER-—THK Great General hot yet fodnd . 366
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CHAPTER XYl. p^o«.
1862 — War of the Rebeluon — General Pope —
Cedar MotJHTAiM — Gainesville — Second Bull
Run — Chantillt — McClellan'b Hand^Threb
Hundred Thousand More — Lee. in Maryland —
Harper's Ferky — South Mountain — Antibtam —
Lincoln and McClellan — "Seeks Quiet and
Repose at Labt" 375
CHAPTER XVn.
1863 — ^War of the Rebellion — Genebal Burnbide —
Fredebicksburo — General Hooker tbibd — Chan-
cellorsville— Stonewall Jackson — Wbere now
siood the "God of Battles?" — General Meade
AND the AbHY of THE POTOHAC — GeTTTSBUBG —
Lee outgeneraled ' .' 401
CHAPTER SVm.
1863 — War of the Rebellion — The West — Vicks-
BURo — Port Hudson — The Mississippi Opened —
Chiceahauqa — Chattanooga — Lookout Mount-
ain— Battle above the Clouds — Bubnside at
Knoxville — Minor Events — Negro Soldierb —
Fort Pillow — Gillmore at Fort Sumter — Mis-
souri— The Indians — The Navy — England hu-
miliated—Proud Mistress of the Sea ? . 423
CHAPTER XTX.
1863 — War of the Rebellion— Congress in the Win-
ter OP 1863— The Message — The Fugitive Slave
Law refeai^d — Mr. Lincoln's Proclamations
AND Mistakes 455
CHAPTER XX.
War of the Rebellion — Mr. Lincoln's Burdens —
His Speech at Gettysburg — Meddlesome Horace
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Greeley's Dodbtfdl Cokdcct — I^Einx) Attempt6
AT Negotiation 483
CHAPTER XXI.
1864 — War of the Rebeluon — Nojukations — Can-
didates— Platforms — PKEaiDEMruL Election —
No SWAPPINO HOBBEB WHILB CROBBIMO A StREAH —
Tee Cabinet , 498
CHAPTER XXn.
1864 — ^War of the Rebellion— CoNQRESfl in the Win-
tbb of 1864 — Last Session under Mb, Lincoln —
FoiTBTH Annual Hessaqe — End op Slavery , 513
CHAPTER XXm.
War of the Rebellion — Overtures for Peace —
Mr. Blair and Jefferson Davis — Mr. Lincoln's
Second Inaugural 588
CHAPTER XXrV.
1864 — War op the Rebellion— Grant and Sherman —
End of Mistakes — Atlanta Campaign — Resaca —
Kenesaw Mountain — Dalton — Atlanta — Stone-
man — From the Rapidan to PBTERSBmttf — The
Wilderness — Cold Harbor — Hood in Tennes-
see — Franklin — Nashville — Sherman begins
BIS Wonderful March to the Sea . . 546
CHAPTER XXV.
Beqinning of the End — Sherman in North Caro-
lina — Fall of Charleston — Mr, Lincoln's
Council with his Great Captains — Five Forks —
Fall op Richmond — Sherman and Johnston — End
of the War — Closing Scenes in the Life of Mb.
Lincoln — Death — The Nation ik Sorrow . . 563
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CHAPTER XXVI. paoi
Chabacteb and Work op Abraham Likcolk — A Wou-
DERFDL SrnDT — Thb Gbeat, the Wise, and the
Good 584
CHAPTER XXVII.
Mb. Lincolh'b Reugion — Look at this Mas op Sor-
row— What Verdict? 604
CHAPTER XXVIIL
Another PreruRB — Mr, Lihcoln's Courtships — Mart
Todd — ^Thb PuQKACiotm James Shields , . 633
CHAPTER XXIX.
Me. Linooln at Home aot> ahomo ma Books — ^Thb
LmooLNS iv THE Whtte House — The MtsTBEse . 664
CHAPTER XXX.
Sous Choice SATnias of Abraham Lracour . . 680
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LIFE, ADMINISTRATION, AND TIMES
OF
Abraham Lincoln,
BIXTBENTH PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES.
HftTCh 4, 1B61, to April 13, 1863,
CHAPTER I.
1861— WAR OF THE REBELLION— BIG BETHEL — BUTLER
AND WOOI^SCOTTS PLANS— PATTERSON (N VIRGINIA-
THE CRY OF "ON TO RICHMOND "—GENERAL McDOW.
ELI^FIRST BULL RUN— LOSS OF THE FIRST GREAT BAT-
TLE FOR THE UNION— ■• FORWARD TO WASHINGTON"—
CORRECTING ERRORS.
MARYLAND having undei^one a sudden change
in favor of the Government, the great channels
of communicdtion with Washington being open, and
Baltimore having become civil to Federal aoldiers,
some of the more treacherous, unyielding, and deter-
mined of the rebel citizens being confined at Fort
McHenry, on the 22d of May General Butler took
oomniand of Fortress Monroe, with his department
nominally embracing North Carolina and the tide-
water region of Virginia, about the mouth of the
Gbesftpeake. Several thousand troops were soon
gathered under his command, bi}t besides laboring
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10 LIFE AND TIMES OF
under the misfortane of beipg green soldiers, they
had inexperienced and incompetent general officers.
During the season General Butler undertook but one
movement of much importance, and this resulted dis-
astrously. On the 9th of June he sent out a strong
force under E. W. Pierce, a Massachusetts militia
general, who had never seen a battle, and had do
skill as a soldier, hoping to drive the rebels from his
front, and surprise and capture them at Little Bethel.
Before daylight on the following morning, one of
Pierce's regiments, taking another for a regiment of
rebels, fell upon it, killing and wounding a number
before the nibtake could be coiTOcted. This unfor-
tunate occurrence, against which- they had been es-
pecially warned, disconcerted the plans of the expe-
dition. Still Pierce, sending back for additionnl
troops, advanced to Big Bethel, where' he found the
rebels under John B. Magruder, a much superior
of&cer, awaiting him. A 6ght ensued, in which the
Union loss was considenible, while that of the rebels
was hardly noticeable. Pierce succeeded in making
a very reputable and orderly retreat, and here the
matter' ended, as did also his military career. Eiirly
in the fall General Butler himself was succeeded at
Fortress Monroe by Generiil John B. Wool, but not
until he had taken another important step in his
very remarkable war record, as will be seen farther on.
The Governor of Pennsylvania, with the quota
from that Stiite, under the President's first call, had
sent into the field General Robert Patterson, who
in his better days had made some reputation as a
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ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 11
soldier. With the three months' mUitia, General Scott
believed nothing more should be expected or under-
taken than opening the way to Washington, securing
that city, holding Marylund and the Potomac, secur-
ing the long line of the border States, and, perhaps,
recapturing Harper's Ferry. This was, indeed, an
ambitious plan for an undisciplined army, to remain
in service but ninety days. General Patterson's
head-quarters had been established at Chambeisburg,
a position affording him a^good opportunity for watch-
ing the rebels in Virginia, and operating with expe-
dition against them in an attempt to gain a foothold
in Maryland, a purpose about which there was no
doubt, however impossible its execution. Patterson
deemed Harper's Ferry of great importance, if not
destined to be the battle-field of the war, where the
question of secession was to be speedily settled.
There was both North and South a very erroneous
stress put upon this point, and especially did Lee
and Jefferson Davis consider it of great military value
to them, and with much diflBcully did Joseph E.
Johnston, when sent to command the place, induce
them to assent to his better judgment as to the error
concerning its value. After a long and needless de-
lay, Patterson crossed the Potomac at Williiimsport
about the middle of June to find, greatly to his sur-
prise, that Johnston had on the 13th and Hth evac-
uated and burned the place, and withdrawn to Win-
chester. Patterson looked upon this conduct of the
rebel general in the light of a victory to the Union
army under him, nnd so reported. But he again
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12 UFE AND TIMES OF
returned to the Dovth side of the Potomac, where he
could watch the further movements of Johnston with
more sftfety. The newly developed project of a
movement from Washington towards Miinassas led
General Scott to order Patterson to cross into Vir-
ginia again to engage the attention of, if not attack,
and whip Johnston. This order he executed so far
as to advance to Martinshmg and a place called
Bunker Hill, where he remained until Johnston, con-
cluding he was not going to offer fight, stole away on
the 17th and 18th, and two days afterwards joined
Beauregard with the greater part of his army at Bull
Run, thus insuring the defeat of the Union army un-
der McDowell. This was the very thing General
Patterson was expected and urged to prevent, and so
General Scott informed him. And yet after he had
allowed Johnston with an army half the size of his
own to run away, he ridiculously claimed that he had
done more than the General-in-Chief meant for him
lo do. Patterson was then sixty-nine years of age,
and it was a great mistake to look for a fight in this
old man, or to risk the honor and safety of the Nation
in his keeping on the field. It is needless or boot-
less to say that he was persuaded by Fifz John
Porter and others at Bunker Hill to turn back with-
out fighting Johnston. General Patterson was alone
responsible for the utter failure of the campaign
under him.
The purposes to be carried out under Patterson,
to some extent gave rise to the movement toward
Richmond, and finally the battle of Manassas or Bull
ovGoO'^lc
ABRAHAM UNOOLN. 13
Ran. It 'nras, of coarse, seen 9,t Washington, that
a junction between Johnaton's force at Harper's
Ferry or Winchester, and that under Beauregard at
Manassas Junction, only thirty-five miles from Ar-
lington Heights, could easily be effected. The rebels
were aware that a contingency of this kind might
arise, and from the outset they provided for it as
well as they could. Johnston's desertion of Harper's
Ferry was based upon the possibility of this emer-
gency as well as upon the movements of McClellan
towards the Shenandoah Valley. Accordingly, when
Patterson was ordered to cross the Potomac, General
McDowell was ordered to make a feint movement
from Ai'lington Heights to occupy the attention of
Beauregard, who, since his wonderful achievement at
Fort Sumter, bad swelled with military importance.
McDowell's movement was designed by General
Scott simply as a diversion in favor of Patterson,
and nothing more. But the Administration felt
serioasly the restless spirit of the loyal North at this
juncture, where there was a generHl cry for some-
thing to be done. The three months' men should
put down the Rebellion, or at least do something
more toward it than was indicated by Genera! Scott's
program. " On to Richmond " became the cry of the
country, and to some extent the project took shape
at Washington.' Late in June Genernl Irvin Mc-
Dowell in command at Arlington Heights presented to
General Scott a plan for an attack on Manassas
Junction with a view of clearing the way to Rich-
mond, and in a war council at the President's house
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14 LIFE AND TIMES OF
on the 29th of June it was decided to make the
move. General Scott at ooce isBoiog the necessary
orders, and the preparation began.
General Scott believed that his former plans were
sufficiently extensive, and in the council stubbornly
opposed this new and doubtful adventure, and Mc-
Dowell distinctly asserted that he could not whip
Beauregard and Johnston combined. But GeneriLl
Scott thought he could relieve this feature of the
case readily by forcing Pntteraon to his assistance.
So on the 16th of July McDowell began his march
with the purpose of attacking Beauregard on Satur-
day, the 20th. The army consisting of less thiin
thirty-five thousand men of all lines was organized
into five small divisions commanded in order of their
numbers by General Daniel Tyler, Colonel David
Hunter, Colonel S. P. Heintzelman, Colonel Theodore
Runyon, and Colonel D. S. Mites. But Runyon's
division numbering nearly six thousand was left be-
hind on the line of march, no part of it going so far
out as Centerville. A part of Miles's division was
'also not engaged.
McDowell took the Warrenton Pike, and as he
advnnced, Beauregard's outposts withdrew, until at
last he discovered the rebel force somewhat less than
twenty thousand strong posted back of Bull Run, a
fordable creek meandering in a south-easterly course
between Centerville and Manassas Junction, at the
main fords in a broken line eight miles long from the
Stone Biidge on Warrenton Pike to the Orange and
Alexandria Railroad.
ovGoO'^lc
ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 15
On the' 18lh T^'ler made a reconaoisance io force
towards the center of Beauregard's position about
Blackbura'a Ford, aad was worsted by it, the affair
having reached the dignity of a battle, and gone far
beyond his instructions. On this Tery day John-
ston, by orders from Richmond, began his march from
Winchester to join Beauregard, and about noon
Saturday, with a few regiments reached his destina-
tion, and outranlting Beauregard, assumed command
of the army.
On Thursday night McDowell decided to cross the
Run above the Stone Bridge, turn the enemy's left
and get possession of Manassas Gap Railroad, con-
trary to his original plan of turning the right and
clearing the way to Richmond directly by Manassas
Junction. Two considerations led him to this change,
first the difficulty of the route to Manassas Junction
and the comparative smoothness of the country by
the enemy's left, and the belief that this course
would enable him to prevent Johnston bringing his
army to the help of Beauregard. This change of plan
would have been made even had he known when he
made it that the junction of the rebel forces would
have been effected before he could carry it out.
Friday was unfortunately spent in locating the
crossings of Bull Run above Stone Bridge, and ar-
ranging the plan of battle, and Saturday he .found
himself unable to move owing mainly to the condi-
tion of his supplies. McDowell knew the importance
of time at this juncture, having now been greatly
delayed by the careless and unsoldier-like habits of
ov Google
16 LIFE AND TIMES OF
his army, chiefly composed of three months' militia.
His ordera for the battle were issued oa Saturday
night, and on Sunday morning between two and three
o'clock the movement began. At this critical mo-
ment the time of service of two or three of his regi-
ments expired, and these deliberately marched for
Washington instead of towards the rebel position,
and so unsatisfactory and tardy was the general
movement that it was four hours after Tyler had
fired his signal gun at the Stone Bridge before the
other divisions were in place across Bull Run, and
the battle begun. A3 the morning broke, the rebels,
who had also prepared for an attack thiit day on
McDowell, were not long in discovering the unex-
pected turn in hia advance upon their left inatead of
their center, and speedily adapted themselves to the
circumstances. Until noon the battle waged with
somewhat unvarying indications of a complete
triumph of the Union army, notwithstanding the loss
of time and indifference of movements in the early
morning. As yet McDowell knew nothing of the
presence of Johnston and his troops on the rebel side,
and had no reason to suspect that the day would
close on his utter defeat.
The rebel line had by this time swung around
with one end resting on Bull Run and the other to-
ward Manassas Gap Railroad, facing the Warrenton
Pike, and occupying the high level plateau above
Young's Creek, a tributary of Bull Run. The ad-
vantage of their position was now very great, while
the Union army having driven the rebels before it at
ov Google
ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 17
every point, occupied tiie low and broken ravine or
valley along Young'a Creek. Many of tlie rebels had
been pat to flight, and it was subsequently beld by
some military wiseacres that had McDowell continued
after them to Manassas depot and abandoned his ad-
vance up the hilt in the face of the well-posted force,
the whole would have been turned into a rout, and
the victory have been easy. Up to this time the
rebel army had not been well handled, and, perhaps,
this would have been so, as the generals on that side
evidently considered their prospects very doubtful
when they began to take position on the plateau
above Toung's Creek, and the rebel fugitives at the'
railroad declared unanimously that they were already
totally defeated. Subsequent events did not sustain
the appearances.
But McDowell overlooked the true position of
aiTairs in his favor in this direction, and prepared to
gain possession of tile plateau, where tiie rebels soon
massed a force equal to his own. Several desperate
attempts were now made to accomplish his purpose
with varying success, the national troops driving the
rebels before them, and then in return being driven
back on the broken ascent, and although the Ells-
worth Zouaves had been knocked out of existence as
an orgtinization by mistaking an Alabama regiment
for one of Ihe Union, one of those singular accidents
which often befall armies in the heat of conflict, and
several other similar occurrences, the general outlook
was still, perhaps, favorable to the Government. The
demoralization was, however, quite apparent, and it
2-q
ovGoO'^lc
18 LIFE AHD TIMES OF
was very evident that any unforeseen event might
iostantly decide the day adversely.
At the critical juncture this event was not wanU
ing. E. Kirby Smith with the remainder of Johns-
ton's troops from Winchester now appeared on the
ground, and, with a shout, rushed tigainst the right
flunk of the Union nrmy. This unexpected assault
aent through McDoweU's lines the cry that Johnston
hiid come from the Shenandoah. Other rebel troops
were thrown into the conflict at this moment, when
the Union forces choosing to consider the attack irre-
sistible, fled from the field, and the first great battle
for the perpetuation of human slavery was ended.
McDowell covered the retreat as best he could
with his small force of regulars, and that night aban-
doned the determination of making a stand at Cen-
terville. The rebels made little or no pursuit, and
McDowell leisurely returned to the neighborhood of
Washington. The loss on the side of the Govern-
ment WAS 481 killed, 1,011 wounded, and 1,460
prisoners, many of whom were wounded ; on the
rebel side 387 were killed and 1,582 wounded and a
few prisoners were taken. Twenty-five or twenty-
eight of McDowell's forty-nine guns fell into the
hands of the rebels, chiefly on the retreat to Center-
ville, where they had to be abandoned by reason of
the obstruction of the road by the srmy wngons, and
considerable quantities of army stores, small arms
and baggage. General McDowell deemed it advis-
able to leave his own dead to be buried by the rebels,
a task not performed by them for several days.
ovGod'^lc
ABRAHAM UKCOLN. 19
The excitement caused throughoat' the entire
coantry by this defeat of the national army was iu>
describably intense, but, of course, of entirely dis-
Bimilar character in the loyal and rebellious sections.
Universal surprise, dismay, and sadness were felt
among the loyal in the North, while shouts of exul-
tation and triumph, exaggeration, willful misrepresen-
tation, and boasting came from the victors. When
the loyal section woke up to the reslities of the de-
feat, and began to see that a large disciplined army
and a long contest would be required to put down
the Rebellion, reasons for this first defeat were
eagerly and credulously sought. Many of those who
bad cried " On to Richmond," were now willing to
take back seats, and keep their hands from meddling.
But the great masses were still ready to pa.ss judg-
ment on the conduct of the campnign. What was
then seen dimly was in time plain enough. It was
a very difficult matter in the North to believe that
Southern guierals and Southern soldiers were supe-
rior, and few did believe it. While this idea went
np at the South, it was justly scouted down in the
loyal seclion. Everybody was blamed for the dis-
aster, and everybody set out with a determination to
see the disgrace wiped out. On the Union side this
was a great advantage derived from the misfortune.
Still the national cause suffered by the defeat both
at home and abroad.
A great and, perhaps, unavoidable difficulty at
this time, as in roost others throughout the war, was
that the world depended largely for information ugon
ov Google
20 LIFE AND TIMES OF
the handreds of newspaper reporters who followed
the armies, and upon the unofficial and partisan news-
papers. As a general rale, probably the reporters
and letter-writers with the army were disposed to
tell the trath, but they saw so little, and took so
much for granted, and wrote amidst such limited cir-
cumstances that nothing better should have been ex-
pected of them. Many of the partisan newspapers
started out willfully to distort, exaggerate, and mis-
represent everything they touched in favor of their
own side. The disposition to exaggerate was every-
where, both North and South, extreme and appalling,
among all classes of people. There was no place,
indeed, where this spirit was not found ; not even in
the pulpit, nor in the prayers of the most pious.
Perhaps the most notable case of foreign misrep-
resentation, of the most premeditated, determined,
unmitigated, and wicked sort was (hat of " The Lon-
don Times." Of this unprincipled but influential
Bnglish paper, Samuel A. Qoddard, of Birmiogham,
says in his work entitled "Letters on the American
RebeUion :" —
" At the outbreak ' The London Times ' declared with
exultation that the 'great experiment had failed,' that the
' great Republic had broken up ;' the eucceea of the Re-
bellion being simply a question of time. Tberefore, in
accordance with its proverbial tactics of endeavoring to be
on the winning side, it lent its whole weight and influence
the rebels, in order to obtain the result predicted and
dently wished, and its sophisms, its misrepresentations,
I insolence throughout the conflict, in treating of Amer-
in affairs knew no boands. It sent its correspondent to
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ABRAHAM UNCOUf. 21
Am^ca for the express purpose of damaging the Union
and bolstering up the rebel oause."
Wm. H. Russell, this correepoDdeDt, was quite
Bucceesful in carrying out the exact purpose for
which lie was seot over here. He wrote up the
South, and wrote down the Qovernment, and the
truth never coustituted any fixed part of his inclina-
tions or work, otherwise he would uot have been
executing his master's will.
In looking hack from this remote date several
more or less important things appear as causes of the
loss of the first great battle on the Union side.
Among these caases, it may not be necessary to men-
tion the fact of the Union General moving out and
beginning the assault on Sunday. If he had not
taken this step the rebels would have done so on the
same day. It is, however, certainly true that had he
selected his position on the high lands about Center-
ville, it would have been greatly to his advantage and
possibly led to his final overthrow of the enemy, had
he awaited to be attttcked. But the intelligence and
judgment of him who holds to the belief that the
misfortune of the national army was owing to its
bringing on the battle on Sunday may well be ques-
tioned; nor does he demonstrate his claim to superior
and commendable piety by such belief, perhaps. Still
even in war, customary considerations, as well as re-
ligious verity, point to the voluntary observance of
the Sunday.
Among the undebatable causes of the defeat were
indecision and delays at Washington, and in the prog-
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22 LIFE AND TIMES 0F
ress of the army when once set in motion ; the inac-
tivity, disobedience, and failare of General Patterson ;
the failare of Scott to aend ten thousand fresh troops
to McDowell from Washington ; treachery, both civil
and military; and, perhaps, superior generalship of
the rebels on the field.
In his " Narrative of Military Operations," General
Joseph E. Johnston, a writer altogether incomparably
superior in wisdom and fairness to Jefferson Davis
and A. H. Stephens, says of the battle of Manassas,
or Bull Run: —
" If the tactics of the Federals bad been equal to their
strategy, we should have been beateo. If, ioatead of being
broDgbt iub) action in detail, their troops had been formed
in two lilies, with a proper reserve, and had assailed Bee
and JacksoD in that order, the two Southern brigades
must have been swept from the field in a few minutes, or
enveloped. General McDowell would have made such a,
formation, probably, had he not greatly underestimated
the strength of his enemy,"
And in speaking of the comparative advantages
of his force. General Johnston says : —
"The Northern army had the disadvantage, a great
one to such undisciplined troops as were engaged on both
sides, of being the assailants, and advancing under fire to
the attack, which can be well done only by trained soldiers.
They were much more liable to confusion, therefore, thao
the generally stationary ranks of the Confederates."
It would have been hut ordinary prudence for
General McDowell to have made the disposition of
his undisciplined troops here indicated. He did not
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ABBAHAU LINCOLN. 28
even organise a "proper reserve." Miles's division
left at Centerville, and a part of it making a feint
against the rebel center at Bull Ran, waa not called
into use 'nntil tbe battle was tost, and, stningely
enough, the division of Runyon, stretched out about
Vienna and along the way to Washington, was allowed
to remain inactive.
Patterson deserved all the censure he got for
failing to engage and whip Johnston at Winchester,
or give him an equal race to Bull Run; but the
failure at Washington to send tbe greater part of the
army there to McDowell's aid is little less reprehen-
sible. At twelve o'clock on Sunday ten thousand
fresh troops, including Runyon's division, should have
rushed in mass upon the field from Washington,
sweeping the rebel army before it, and deciding the
fate of the day long before Kirby Smith came
upon the ground, bringing the same good fortune to
the rebels.
The discipline of the army was poor enough, and
this difficulty was greatly augmented by the crowds
of camp-followers, and the curious from Washington,
who came out to see the end of the Rebellion. From
the day of marching from Washington the army was,
to a considerable extent, influenced by the groundless
fancy that the task before it was an easy one. The
men and the vast retinae of followers and sight-seers,
to say nothing of some of the officers, looked upon
the affair as a grand occasion, fit to be made the
most of. This feeling was helped on by the fact
that the term of enlistment was about to expire.
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24 UFE AND HUES OF
Taking all these things into consideration, the men
were disposed to be easy and indiSerent. Even on
Sunday morning, when marching to engage in mortal
combat, in a position wholly novel to the great mass
of them, they amused themselves by strolling in and
out of the ranks, in emptying and filling their can-
teens,-and many of them actually took off their shoes
to bathe their feet and wade and splash about in
Bull Run. Still, most of these men were brave and
patriotic, and fought like old soldiers, and, with all
the diqadvanUges against them, it is not at all clear
that the day would have been lost, had Kirby Smith
not appeared suddenly on the scene, bringing a new
moral and physical element into the contest.
This battle was long misrepresented and under-
estimated, yet it was, in a sense, decisive in the
great struggle. The moral and political effect, at the
outset, especially, was greatly against the Govern-
ment, but in this, like everything else, the case
was much exaggerated. The Nation gained in energy
and determination and experience; and while the
RebeUion was advanced politically, to some extent,
perhaps, at the time, by its success in battle, it lost
wonderfully in discipline and moral force at home,
the only place it ever had any strength. General
Joseph E. Johnston writes thus on this. point: —
"All the military conditions, we know, forbade an at-
tempt OD Washington. The Confederate army was more
disorganized by victory than that of the United States by
defeat. The Southern volnnteers believed that the object
of the war had been accomplished by the victory, and that
ovGoO'^lc
ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 25
tbej bsd achieved all that their countrj required of them.
Haoy, therefore, in ignorance of their military obligationa,
left the army not to return. Some hastened home to ex-
hibit the trophies picked up on the field ; others left their
regiments without ceremony to attend to wounded friends,
frequently accompanying them to hospitals in distant towns.
Sach were the reports of general and staff ofEcere, and rail-
road ofiScialg. Exaggerated ideas of the victory, prevaiting
among our troops, cost us more men than the Federal
army lost by defeat."
These meD had started out with the idea that one
Southern man was equal to three or five Northern
ones, and the war was only regarded as a grand
chivalrous adventure. Their habits of idleness, ease,
and domineering independence, rendered it out of the
question for them to entertain any other views until
taught it by hard experience. Thousands of the
private soldiers went into the army with servants,
slaves, by their sides, or carrying ("toting") their
baggage and camping and housekeeping outfit along
in the necessary army train; and General Johnston
says in his "NaiTative" that when he ordered the
evacuation of Harper's Perry it was actually found
that nearly every private soldier had a trunk with
which to obstmct the progress of the movement.
The wants and comforts of these luxuriant men of
leisure were not to be limited to the narrow bounds
of knapsack and canteen.
Notwithstanding the general sentiment as to hav>
ing whipped the Yankees and accomplished so much
conclusively, there soon arose a feeling of dissatis-
faction in the South touching the result of the battle
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28 LIFE ABD TIMES OF
of Boll Rdd. LoDg before the cry of " On to Ricb-
moDd" WHS heard in the North, the general demand
of the South was " Forward to Waflhington." There
nay have been little more thooght of making Wash-
ington the capibd of the slave confederacy than there
was of making lUohmoad the seat of the Federal
GoTemment, bat the moral and political, and per-
haps military, effect of the capture of the National
Capital would have been a stupendous send-off to
the Rebellion. And now when the sense of satis-
faction wore off, and it began to be seen that they
were do nearer writing their terms in Faneuil Hall
Uian when they first set out, complaints sprang up
throughout the South. Every non-combatant, at
least, thought he had discovered that Johnston's vic-
torious nrmy should have followed McDowell into
Washington, and on to Maryland. And very soon
even Johnston, Beauregard, and Jefferson Davis fell
into a quarrel about the responsibility as to the fail-
ure to pursue the loyal army and run into Washing-
ton with it. The more they talked about it the
further they went apart, and the more dissatisfied
became the general public. After the battle was
fought and won, Jefferson Davis came on the field,
and although there is not much evidence that his
presence was of any especial consequence, he claimed
more to himself than Johnston and Beauregard were
willing to admit. While the merits of this case can
now he of no importance, if they ever were indeed, one
thing is quite apparent, that few of these men ever
lost the idea of self>glory, however gloomy their
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ABRAHAM UHCOLN. 27
cause or evil its purpose. Little General Johnston
would not even engage in the battle of Manassas
until he had first settled the matter of rank between
himself and Beauregard ; and a part of Beauregard's
report was so offensive to Mr. Davis that he asked
for its modification, and this not being done he made a
counter statement; and the rebel " Congress" at Rich-
mond struck the whole thing from the report. If
more than this should have been expected from the
leaders of a bad and hopeless rebellion, how much
more should have been expected from the patriotic
defenders of the Republic 7
It has been said that tiie rebel genei-alsbip on the
field was, perhaps, superior; but this is not a clear
proposition. The rebel commander was unduly in-
terested in guarding his right on Bull Run, where
McDowell never meditated an attack. Although
Johnston criticises McDowell's neglect as to his re-
serve corps, bis own arrangement in this respect was
equally wanting; the large reserve force he might
have well utilized, he left idle miles down Bull Run
and at Manassas Junction; and for failing to bring
these troops up and throwing them, at the proper
moment, on the disconcerted Federals, Johnston sub-
sequently censured himself. The rebel generalship
in this first battle was wavering and uncertein, with
all its advantages, and wanting in that decision and
rapidity which often distinguished it at a later date.
So unbroken and strong was the Union army that
Johnston considered himself unable to pursue it, and
BO equal appeared the fighting qualities of the com-
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1
28 LIFE AND TIMES OF
batants that this trial greatly changed the errooeous
correDt of public opinioD, and decided the fact that
the contest was destined to be long and sharp. It
should also have been the last battle, as when the
equality of fighting capacity, man for man, had been
demonstrated, leaders of ordinary wisdom and calm-
ness, knowing where was the great preponderance of
numbers and resoarces, should have seen the end.
The certainty of the ultimate failure of the Rebellion
was never more apparent than it was after the first
battle of Bull Run, although this was not fully real-
ized by the defenders of the Union, while, perhaps,
no loyal man ever, even in the darkest hour, lodt hb
faith in this result.
ovGoO'^lc
ASSAHAU LINCOLN.
CHAPTER II.
1861— WAR OF THE REBELLION— "THIRTY-SEVENTH CON-
GRESS'S—EXTRA SESSION— MR. LINCOLN'S FIRST
MESSAGE — PERSONAL LIBERTY — HABEAS
CORPUS— RIGHTS OF THE GOVERNMENT.
AT noon on the 4th of July, 1861, Congress as-
sembled under the President's proclamatioD of
April 15th. The Senate wns now found to have
forty-nine members, thirty-one being Republicans,
thirteen Democrats, and five were called Unionists.
John W. Forney, of Philadelphia, who four years
previously had been anxious to fill a place in the
Cabinet of Mr. Buchanan, was chosen clerk of this
branch.
The House had one hundred and seventy-eight
members, one hundred and six being Repnblicans,
forty-two Democrats, twenty-six Unionists, nnd four
vacancies; Galnsha A. Grow, of Pennsylvania, was
elected Speaker of the House, and Emerson Etheridge,
of Tennessee, clerk. Of the border Slave States,
Delaware, Maryland, and Kentucky were fully rep-
resented; Missouri and Virginia partially, and Ten-
nessee had Andrew Johnson in the Senate, and
Horace Maynard in the Lower House. On the next
day President Lincoln's first message was received
by Congress,
b, Google
LIFE AND TIMES OF
FIB8T MESSAGE.
FsLLOW-GiTiEKits or THi Skhatb and Hodbb or RBPRisBHTATivn:—
Having been coDveoed oo ao extraordinar; occasion, as
authorized by the Consdtutioa, your attentiou is Dot called to
any ordioary subject of legiBlatioo.
At the beginning of the present Presidential term, four
months ago, the functione of the Federal Government were
found to be generally suspended within the several States of
South Carolina, Georgia, Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana, and
Florida, excepting only those of the Post-office Department
Within these Stales all the forts, arsenals, dock-yards, cus-
tom-houses, and the like, including the movable and stationary
property in and about tbem, had been seized, and were held in
open hostility to this Government, excepting only Forts Pickens,
l^ylor, and Jefiferaon, on and near the Florida coast, and Fort
Bumter, in Charleston Harbor, South Carolina. The forts thus
wzed had been put in improved condition ; new ones had been
built, and arnted forces had been organized, and were organ-
iung, all avowKlly with the same hostile purpose.
The forts remaining in the poesesuon of the Feileral Gov-
ernment in and near these Stales were either beneged or menaced
by warlike preparations, and especially Fort Sumter was nearly
surrounded by well-protected hoetjle batteries, with guns equal
in quality to the beat of its own, and outnumbering the latter
as perhaps ten to one. A disproportionate share of the Federal
muskets and rifles had somehow found their way into these
States, and had been seized to be used against the Government
Accumulations of the public revenue, lying within them, had
been seized for the same object The navy was scattered in
distant seas, leaving but a very small part of it within the im-
mediate reach of the Govemnient. Officers of the Federal
army and navy had resigned in great numbers; and of those
resigning, a large proportion had taken up arms against the
Government Simultaneously, and in connecUon with all this,
the purpose to sever the Federal Union was openly avowed.
In accordance with this purpose, an ordinance had been adopted
in each of these Slates, declaring the States, respectively, to be
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ABRAHAM UNGOLN. 31
separated from the National UdIod. A formula for iosUtating
a combined goveroment of these SlatǤ had been promulgated ;
and this illegal oi^anizatiOD, in the character of Confederate
Btates, was alreadj iDToking recognition, aid, and intervention
from foreign powers.
Finding this condition of things, and believing it to be an
imperative duty upon the incoming Executive to prevent, if
possible, the consummalJon of such attempt to destroy the Fed-
eral Union, a choice of means to that end became indispensable.'
This choice was made, and was declared in the Inaugural Ad-
dress. The policy chosen looked to the exhaustion of all peace-
ful measures, before a resort to any stronger ones. It sought
only to hold the public placea and property not already wrested
from the Government, and to collect the revenue; relying for
Uie rest on time, discussion, and the ballot-box. It promised a
continuance of the maile, at Government expense, lo the very
people who were resisting the Govern ment ; and it gave repeated
pledges against any disturbance to any of the people, or any of
tbdr rights. Of all that which a President might Constitntion-
ally and justifiably do in such a case, everytbing was forborne,
without which, it was b&lieved poa«ble to keep the Government
on foot
On the 6th of March (the present incumbent's first full day
in office), a letter of Major Anderson, commanding at Fort
Bumter, written on the 2Sth of February, and received at the
War Department on the 4th of March, was, by that Depart-
ment, placed ID his hands. This letter expressed the profefleional
opinion of the writer, that re-enforcements could not be thrown
into that fort within the time for his relief, rendered necessary
by the limited supply of provisions, and with a view of holding
possession of the same, with a force of less than twenty thou-
sand good and well-disciplined men. This opinion was concurred
in by all the olBcers of his command, and their memoranda on
the subject were made inclosures of Major Anderson's letter.
The whole was immediately laid before Lieu tenant-General
Scott, who at once concurred with Major Anderson in opinion.
On reflection, however, he took full time, consulting with other
officers, both of the army and the navy, and, at the end of four
days, came reluctantly but decidedly to the same coDclnsion
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32 LIFE AND TIMES OF
as before. He also stated at the same time that do sacb suffi-
cient force was iben at the control of the Government, or could
be raised and brought to the ground within the time when the
proviaions in the fort would be ezhauated. In a purely mili-
tary point of view, this reduced the duty of the Adminietration
in the case to the mere matter of getting the garriaon safely out
of the fort
It is believed, however, that t« so abandon that position,
under the circumstances, would he utterly ruiuous ; that the
nectmiy under which it was to be done would not be fully un-
derstood ; that by many, it would he construe'' as a part of a
volutdary policy ; that at home, it would discourse the friends
of the Union, embolden its adversaries, and go far to insure to
the latter a recognition abroad ; that, in fact, it would be our
oational destruction consommated. This could not be allowed.
Starvation was not yet upon the garrison ; and ere it would be
reached. Fort Pickens might be re-enforced. 'Hiis last would be
a clear indication of polici/, and would better enable the country
to accept the evacuation of Fort Sumter, as a military neceasiiy.
Ad order was at bnce directed to be seat far the landing of
the troops from the steamship BivolA/n, into Fort Pickens.
This order could not go by land, but must take the longer and
slower rout£ by sea. The first return news from the order was
received just one week before the fall of Fort Sumt«r. The news
itself was, that the officer commanding the Sabine, to which
vessel the troops had been transferred from the Brooklyn, acting
upon some qaau. armistice of the late Administration (and of
the existence of which the preeent AdmiDistratiou up to the
time the order was dispatched, had only too vague and un-
certain rumors to fix attention), had refused to land the troops.
To now re-enforce Fort Pickens, before a crisis would be reached
at Fort Snmter, was impossible — rendered so by the near ex-
haustion of provisions in the latter-named fort. In precaution
against such a conjlincture, the Government had, a few days
before, commenced preparing an expedition, as well adapted as
might be, to relieve Fort Sumter, which expedition was in-
tended to be ultimately used, or not, according to circum-
stances. The strongest anticipated case for using it was now
presented; and it was resolved to send it forward. As had
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ABBAHAM LINCOLN. 33
been intended, in this contingency, it was alao resolved to
notify the Governor of South Carolina that he might expect
an attempt would be made to proviaou the fort; and that, if
the attempt should not be resisted, there would be no effort to
throw in men, arms, or ammunition, without further notice, or
in case of an attack upon the fort. This notice was accordingly
given ; whereupon the fort was attacked, and bombarded to its
&)l, without even awaiting the arrival of the provinoning
expedition.
It is thus seen that the assault upon, and reduction of,
Fort Sumter was, in no sense, a matter of eelf-defenee on the
part of the assulants. They well knew that the garrison in
the fort could, by no poeubility, commit aggression upon them.
They knew — they were expressly notified — that the giving of
bread to the few brave and hungry men of the garrison, was
all which would on that occasion be attempted, unless them-
selves, by resisting so much, should provoke more. They knew
that this Qovemment dedred to keep the garrison in the fort,
not to aee^ them, but merely to muntain visible possession,
and tliQS to preserve the Union from actual and immediate
dissolution ; trusting, as herein before stated, to time, discussion,
and the ballot-box, for final adjustment; and they assailed
and reduced the fort for precisely the reverse object — to drive
out the visible authority of the Federal Union, and thus force
it to immediate dissolution. That this was their object, the
Executive well understood; and having sud to them, in the
inaugural address, " You can have no conflict without being
youraelves the aggressors," he took pains, not only to keep this
declaration good, but also to keep the case so free from the
power of ingenious sophistry as that the world should not be,
able to misunderstand it. By the affair at Fort Sumter, with
its BurroundiDg circnm stances, that point was reached. Then,
and thereby, the assailants of the Groverament b^an the con-
flict of arms, without a gun in mght, or in expectancy to return
their fire, save only the few in the fort, sent to that harbor,
yeaiB before, for their own protection, and still ready to give
that protection id whatever was lawful. In this act, discarding
all else, they have forced npon the oouotry the distinct issue :
" Immediate diaeolutiou, or bkiod."
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34 LIFE AND TIUE6 OF
And this inue embra«eH more tban tbe &te of these TjDitoJ
States. It preaenta to the whole &mily of man the question,
whether a constitutional republic, or democracy — a goyernment
of the people, by tbe same people — can, or can not, EOUDtain
its Territorial iutegrity against its own domesUc foes. It pre-
sents the question, whether discontented individuals, too few in
numbers to control Administration, according to organic law,
in any case, can always, upon the pretenses made in this case,
or on any other pretenses, or arbitrarily without any pretense,
break up their goTerament, and thus practically put an end
to free government upon the earth. It forces us to ask : " Is
there, in all republics, this inherent and fatal weaknessT"
" Must a government of necessity be too itrong for the liberties
of its own people, or too vieak to niuntain its own ezietenceT"
So viewing tbe issue, no choice was left but to call out tbe
war power of the Oovemment ; and so to resist force employed
for its destruction, by force For its [reservation.
Tlie call was made, and the response of the country was
most gratifying, surpassing in unanimity and spirit the most
sanguine expectation. Yet none of the States commonly
called Slaves States, except Delaware, gave a regiment through
r^nlar State organization. A few regiments have been or-
ganized within some others of those States by individual ente^
prise, and received into the Government service. OF course
the seceded States, so-called (and to which Texas had been
joined about the Ume of the inauguration), gave no troope to
tbe cause of the Union. The border States, so-called, were not
uniform in their action ; some of them being almost for the
Union, while in others, as Vir^nia, North Carolina, Tennessee,
and Arkansas, tbe Union sentiment was nearly repressed and
silenced. The course taken in Virginia was liie moat remark*
able, perhaps the most important. A convention, elected by
the people of that State to consider this very question of dis-
rupting the Federal Union, was in session at the capital of
Virginia when Fort Sumter fell. To this body the people
had chosen a large majority of prt^etaed Union men. Almost
immediately after the fall of Sumter, many members of that
majority went over to the original disimion minority, and, with
them, adopted an ordinance for witlidrawing the State (torn
ovGoO'^lc
ABSA.HAM LINCOLN. 86
the Union. Whetiier thu change was wrought bj their great
approval of the aasault upon Sumter, or their great reseotment
at the GoTemmeot'e reeistaDce to that assault, ie not iie&-
nitely known. Although they submitted the .ordinance, for
ratification, to a vote of the people, to be taken on a day then
somewhat more than a month distant, the convention and the
Legislature (which was also in aeasion at the same time and
place), with leading men of the State, not members of either,
immediately commenced acting as if the State were already out
of the Union. Tbey pushed military preparations vigorously
forward all over, the State. They seized the United States
anuory at Harper's Ferry, and the navy-yard at Gosport, near
Korfolk. They received, perhaps invited, into their State large
bodies of troops, with their warlike appointments, from tlie ao-
oaJIed seceded States. They formally entered into a treaty of
temporary alliance and co-operation with the so-called " Con-
federate States," and sent members to their Congress at Mont-
gomery. And, finally, they permitted the insurrectionary gov-
ernment to be transferred to their capital at Richmoqd.
The people of Virginia have thus allowed this giant insur-
rection to make its nest within her borders ; ,and this Govern-
ment has no choice left but to deal with it where it finds it.
And it has the less regret, as the loyal citizen have, in due
form, claimed its protection. Those loyal citizens this Govern-
ment is bound to recognize and protect, as being Virginia.
In the border States, so-called, in fact the middle States,
there are those who fiivor a policy which they call "armed
nentrality ;" that is, an arming of those States to prevent the
Union forces passing one way, or the disunion the other, over
their soil. This would be disunion completed. Figuratively
speaking, it would be the building of an impassable wall along
the line of separation, and yet not quite an impassable one ;
for, under the guise of neutrality, it would tie the hands of the
Union men, and freely pass supplies from among them to the
insurrectionists, which it could not do as an open enemy. At
a stroke, it would take all the trouble off the hands of seces-
sion, except only what proceeds from the external blockade.
It would do for the disumoaists that which, of all things, they
most desire, feed them well, and give them disunion without a
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36 LIFE AND TIMES OF
struggle of th&t own. It reeogoizeB no fidelity to tbe Coneti-
tiition, no obligation to maintain the Unioa; and ivhile very
many irbo bare favored it are, doubtless, loyal citizens, it is,
neverthelees, very iDJurious in et^U
B«cumDg to tbe action of tbe Government, it may be stated
that, at first, a call was made for seventy-five tbousaud militia ;
and rapidly following this, a proclamation was issued for clos-
ing tbe porta of the ineurrecUonary diatricts by proceedings in
tbe nature of blockade. 80 far all was believed to be strictly
legal. At this point the insurrectionists announced their pur-
pose to eater upon tbe practice of privateeriog.
Other calls were made for volunteers to serve three years,
unless sooner discharged, and also for large additions to the
regular army and navy, l^ese measures, whether Btr4ctly I^al
or not, were ventured upon under what appeared to be a popular
demand and a public neeeeeity ; trusting then, as now, that Con-
gress would readily ratify them. It is believed that nothing
baa been done beyond tbe consUtutional competency of Congress.
800D after the first call for militia, it was considered a duty
to authorize the commanding general, in proper cases, according
to his discretion, to suspend tbe privilege of tbe writ of hiAeaa
eoTput, or, in other words, to arrest and detain, without resort
to the ordinary processes and forms of law, such individuals as
he might deem dangerous to the public safety. This authority
has purposely been exercised but very sparingly. Nevertheless,
the legality and propriety of what has been done nuder it are
questioned, and the attention of tbe country has l>een called to
the proposition that one who is sworn to " take care that the
laws be fUthfbUy executed " should not himself violate them.
Of course some conuderation was g^ven to the questions of
power and propriety, before this matter was acted upon. The
whole of the laws which were required to be faithfully executed
were being resisted, and failing of execution in nearly one-third
of tbe States. Must they be allowed to finally fwl of execu*
tion, even bad it been perfectly clear that by the use of tbe
means necessary to their execution some siogle law, made in
such extreme teitderoesa of the citizen's liberty, that practically,
it relieves more of tbe guilty than of the innocent, should, to
a very limited extent, be violated? To state the queslioD more
ov Google
ABRAHAM LUTOOLN. 37
directly, are ftU the laws 614! oru to go unexecuted, and the Gov-
ernment itself go to pieces, lest that one be violated f Even in
such a case, would not the official oath be broken, if the Gov-
ernment should be overthrown, when it was believed that disre-
garding the sbgle law would tend to preserve itf But it was
not believed that this question was presented. It was not be>
lieved that an; law was violated. The provision of the Consti-
tutiun that " the privilege of the writ of habeat (wrpue shall not
be suspended unless when, in cases of rebellion or invasion, the
public safety may require it," is equivaleut to a provision — is a
provision — that such privilege may be suspended when, in cases
of rebellion or invasion, the public safety doa require it. It
was decided that we have a case of rebellion, and that the pub-
lic safety does require the qualified suspension of the privilege
of the writ which was authorized to be made. Now it is in-
sisted that Congress, and not tlie Executive, is vested with this
power. But the CoaBt4tudon itself is alent as to which, or who,
is to exercise the power ; and as the provision was plainly made
for a dangerous emergency, it can uot be believed the iramers
of the instrament intended that, in every case, the danger
should run its course until Congress could be called together;
the very aeeemhling of which mig^t be prevented, as was in-
tended ID this case, by the Rebellion.
No more extended argument is now o%red, as an opinion
at some length wjU probably be presented by the Attorney-
General. Whether there shall be any l^;isIation upon the sub-
ject, and if any, what, is submitted entirely to the better
judgment of Congrees.
The forbearance of this Government bad been so extraor-
dinary and BO long continued as to lead some foreign nations
to shape their action as if they supposed the early destruction
of our National TTnion was probable. While this, on discovery,
gave the Executive some concern, he is now happy to say that
the sovereignty and rights of the United States are now every-
where practically respected by foreign powers, and a general
empathy with the country is manifested. throughout the world.
The reports of the Secretaries of the Treasury, War, and
the Navy will give the information in detail deemed necessary,
ud ooDvenieiit for your deliberation and action; while the
:b,GOO'^IC
38 LIFE AND TIMES OP
Executire and all the departments will stand ready to lapply
omissions, or to communicate new &cts conddered important
for you to know.
It is now recommended that you give the legal means for
making this contest a short and a decidve one; ^at you place
at the control of the Government, for the work, at least four
hundred thousand men and four hundred millions of dollars.
That number of men is about one-tenth of those of proper ages
within the regions where, apparently, aU are wilUng to eugage ;
and the sum ia lees than a twenty-third part of the money value
owned by the men who seem ready to devote thb whole. A
debt of six hundred millions of dollars now is a less sum per
head than was the debt of our Revolution when we came out
of that stru^le; and the money value in the country now
bears even a greater proportion to what it was then than does
the population. Surely each man has as strong a motive now
to preeene our liberties as each had thai to etlabtidi them.
A right reeult at this time will be worth more to the world
than tea times the men and ten times the money. The evi-
dence reaching us from the country leaves no (loubt that the
material for the work is abundant, and that it needs only the
baud of legislation to give it legal sanction, and the hand of
the Executive to give it practical shape and efficiency. One of
the greatest perplexities of the Ooveraraent is to avoid receiving
troops faster than it can provide for them. In a word, the
people wilt save their Government if the Government itself
will do its part only indifferently well. .
It might seem, at first thought, to be of little difference
whether the present movement at the South be called " seces-
ood" or "rebellion." The movers, however, well understond
the difference. At the b^inning they knew they could never
raise their treason to any respectable magnitude by any name
which impUea violation of law. They knew their people poe-
sessed as much of moral sense, as much of devotion to law and
order, and as much pride in and reverence for the history and
government of their common country, as any other civilized
and patriotic people. Tbey knew they could make no advance-
ment directly lu the teeth of these strong and noble sentiments.
Accordmgly they commenced by an insidious debauching of the
ovGoO'^lc
ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 39
jmUic miod. They invented an ingenious Bophisn), which, if
coDoeded, was followed by perfectly logical stops through all
the incidents to the complete destruction of the Union. The
sophism itself ii, that any State of the Union may, emuuten&f
with the National Constitution, and therefore UxufuUy and peoM-
fiiBy, withdraw from the Union without the consent of the
Union or of any other State. The little disguise that the sup-
posed right is to be exercised only for just cause, themseWee to
be the sole judge of its justice, is too thin to merit any notice.
With rebellion thus BugarK»>ated, they hare been drug^ng
the public mind of their section for more than thirty years,
until at length they have brought many good men to a willing-
ness to take up arms against the Government the day afler some
assemblage of men have enacted the &rcical pretense of taking
their Stato out of the Union, who could have been brought to
no such thing the day before.
Tlis sophism derives much, perhaps the whole, of its cur-
rency from the assumption that there is some omnipotent and
sacred supremacy pertaining to a Stale, to each State of our
Federal Union. Our States have neither more nor less power
than that reserved to them in the Union by the Constitution,
no one of them ever having been a State out of the Union.
The original ones passed into the Union even befiyre they cast
off their British Colonial dependence ; and the new ones each
came into the Union directly from a condition of dependence,
excepting Texas. And even Texas, in its temporary indepen-
dence, was never deagnated a State. The new ones only took
the designation of States on coming into the Union, while that
name was first adopted for the old ones in and by the Declaration
of Independence. Therein the " United Colonies" were declared
to be "free and independent States;" but even then the object
plainly was not to declare their independence of om anoVier, or
of the Urdon, but directly the contrary, as their mutual pledge
and their mutual action before, at the time, and afterwards
abundantly diow. The express plighting of faith by each and
all of the original thirteen in the Articles of Confederation, two
yesrs^ater, that the Union shall be perpetual, is most conclusive.
Having never been States, either in substance or in name, out-
side of the Union, whence this magical omnipotence of " Stato
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40 LIFE AND TIMES OF
rights," aaaertiDg a daim of power to lawfully deetroy the tJnioii
itself? Much is eaid about the "sovereignty" of the States;
but the word, even, is not ia the National Constitutiun ; nor, as
ie believed. Id aoy of the State conatitutioiis. What ie a " sov-
ereignty," in the political sense of the term? Would it be &r
wrong to define it "a political community, without a political
superior f Tested by- this, no one of our Slates, except Texas,
ever was a sovereignty. And even Texas gave up the char-
acter on coming into the Union ; by which act she acknowl-
edged the Constitution of the United States, and the laws
and treaties of the United States made in pursuance of the
Constitution, to be, for her, .the supreme law of the land.
The States have their atatta in the Union, and they have
DO other legal slotua. If they break from this, they can
only do so against law and by revolution. The Union, and
not themselves separately, procured their independence and their
liberty. By conquest or purchase, the Union gave each of them
whatever of independence and Ul>erty it has. The Union is
older than any of the States, and, in fact, it created them as
States. Originally some dependent Colonies made the Union,
and, in turn, the Union threw off their old dependence for them,
and made them States, such as they are. Not one of them
ever had a State constitution independent of tlie Union. Of
course, it is not forgotten that all the new States framed their
constitntiona before they entered the Union ; nevertheleee, de-
pendent upon, and preparatory to, coming into the Union.
Unquestionably the States have the powers and rights re-
served to them in and by the National CunstituUon ; bnt among
these, surely, are not included all conceivable powers, however
mischievous or destructive, but, at most, such only as were
known in the worid, at the time, as governmental powers; and
certainly a power to destroy the Government itself had never
been known as a governmental, as a merely adminisbative
power. Tiiis relative matter of national power and State rights,
as a principle, is no other than the principle of gmeralitg and
keali^. Whatever concerns the whole should be confided to
the whole, to the General Government ; while whatever con-
cerns otdy the State should be left exclusively to the State. This
is all there is of original principle about it. Whether the
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ABRAHAM UNCOLN. 41
Nstional Constitntion, in definiog boundariea beUreeu the two,
has api^ied the principle with exact accuracy, is not to be quee-
tioned. We are all bound by that defining, without question.
What is now combated is the position that secession is eon-
tident with the ConstitatioD — is Um/td and peae^vl. It is not
contended that diere is any egress law for it; and nothing
should ever be implied as law wldch leads to anjust or absurd
OfHieequeuces. The Nation purchased with money the coun-
tries out of which several of these States were fenned. Is it
jost tJiat they shall go off without leave, aud without refund*
ingf Tlie Nation paid very large suras (in the aggregate, I
believe, nearly a hundred c^illions) to relieve Florida of t^e
aboriginal tribes. Is it just that she shall now be off without
consent, or without making any return? The Nation i» now in
debt for mouey applied to the benefit of these so-ealled seceding
States, in common with the rest Is it just, either tiiat cred*
itors diall go unpaid, or the remaining States pay the whole?
A part of the present national debt «'as contracted to pay the
old debts of Texas. Is it just that she shall leave, and pay no
part <^this herself?
Again, if one State may seoede, so may another; and when
all shall have seceded, none is left to pay the debts. Is this
quite just to creditors? Did we jiolify them of this sage view
of oars when we borrowed their money ? If we now recognize
this doctrine by allowing the seceders to go in peace, it is diffi*
catt to see what we eanido if others choose to go, or to extort
terms npon which they will promise to remain.
The seceders insist that our Constitution admits of secessioD.
Tliey have assumed to make a national constitution of their
own, in which , of necessity, they have either diaoarded or reiaitted
the right of seceaeion, as, they insist, it exists in oure. If they
have discarded it, they thereby admit that, on principle, it ought
Dot to be in ours. If they have retuned it, by their own oon-
etructioD of ours they show tiiat to be consistent they must
•ecede &om one another whenever they shall find it the easiest
way of settling their debts or efiecting any other selfish or uih
just object The principle itself 1b one of diuntt^ration, and
opoD which no government can possibly endure.
If all the States save one should assert the power to dma
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42 LIFE AND TIUEB OF
that one ont of the Union, it is presumed the whole diiaa of
seceder politicians would at at onoe deny the power, and de-
nounce the act as the greatest outrage upon State rights. But
suppose that precisely the same act, instead of imng called
" driving the one out," should be called " the secediug of the
others from that one," it would be exactly what the seceders
olwm to do ; unJeaa, indeed, they mafce the point that the one,
because it b a minority, may rightfully do what the others, be-
cause they are a m^ority, may not rightfully do. Theee polip
ticians are subtle and profound on the rights of minorities.
They are not partial to that power which made the Constitu-
tion, and speaks from the preamble, calling itself " We, tiie
People."
It may well be queelioned whether there is to-day a ma-
jority of the legally qualified voters of any State, except, per-
haps. South Carolina, in favor of diaunion. There is much
reason to believe that the Union men are the minority in many,
if not in every other one, of the sonialled seceded St^es. The
contrary has not been demonstrated in any one of them. It
is ventured to affirm this, even of Virginia and Tennessee ; fi)r
the result of an election, held in military camps, where the
bayonets ore all on one ude of the question voted upon, can
scarcely be considered as demonstrating popular sentiment. At
such an election all that lai^ class who are at once for the
Union and againel coercion would be coerced to vot« against
the Union.
It may be affirmed without extravagance that the free in-
■titutioDS we enjoy have developed the powers and improved
tlie condition of our whole people beyond any example in the
world. Of this we now have a striking and an impressive
illustration. So large an army as the Government has now on
fbot was never before known, without a soldier in it but who
had taken his place there of his own free choice. But more
than this: there are many single regiments whose members,
one and another, possess full practical knowledge of all the
arts, sciences, professions, and whatever else, wbetiier useful or
elegant, is known in tbe world ; and there is scarcely one from
which there could not be selected a President, a Cabinet, a
Congress, and, perhaps, a Court, abundantly competent to
oyGoO'^lc
ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 43
administer the G^Temmeiit itself I Nor do I say thia is not true,
also, in the army of oar late friends, now adversaries, in thia
oouteflt ; but if it is, 80 mnch better the reason why the Oov
emment which has conferred such benefits on both them acd
us should not be broken up. Whoever, in any section, pro-
poses to abandon such a Qovemment would do well to consider
in deference to what principle it is that he does it; what better
he is likely to get in its Bteail ; whether the substitute will give,
or be intended to give, bo much of good to the people. There
are some foreahadowiogs on this subject Our adversaries
have adopted some dedaradons of independence, in which, un-
like the good old one penned by Jefferson, they omit the words
"All men are created equal." Why? They have adopted a
temporary national consUtution, in the preamble of which, un-
like our good old one signed by Washington, they omit "We,
the people," and eubetitute " We, the deputies of the sovereign
ami independent States." Why? Why this deliberate pressing
out of view the rights of meu and the authority of the people?
This is essentially a people's contest On the side of th«
XToion it is a stru^le for maintaining in the world that form
and substance of Government whose leading object is to elevate
the condition of men ; to lift artificial weights from all shoulders ;
to clear the paths of laudable pursuit for all ; to afford all an
unfettered start and a &ir chance in the race of life. Yield-
ing to partial and temporary departures, from necessity, this
is the leading object of the Government for whose existence
we contend.
I am most happy to believe that the pluo people under-
stand and appreciate this. It is worthy of note that, while in
this the GovemmeDt's hour of trial large numbers of those \a
the army and navy who have been favored with the offices
have resigned and proved false to the hand which had pam-
pered them, not one common soldier or common sailor is known
to have deserted his flag.
Great honor is due to those officers who remuned true,
deapite the example of their treacherous associates; but the
greatest honor and moat important fiict of all is the unanimous
firmness c^ the common soldiers and common sailors. To the
last man, so far as koown, they have successfully rensted the
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44 LIFE AND TIMES OF
traitoroiu effiirts of thoae whoae commaDdB bat an boor before
they obeyed aa abeolute law. This is Ibe patriotic instiact of
plain people. They uoderstand, without an argument, that the
deatroyiug the Qovernment whicb wbb made by Waabingtoo
means no good to tbem.
Our popular Qovemment has often been called an experi-
ment. Two points in it our people have already settled — the
successful abolishing and the sucoeaaful adminittering of it.
One still remains — its successful mamteTiance against a formi-
dable internal attempt to overthrow it It is now fur them to
demonstrate to the world that thoae who can ^rly carry an
election can also suppress a rebellion ; that ballots are the right-
ful and peaceful auccesBors of buUete; and that when ballots
have fairly and ConstttutioDally decided, there can be no suc-
cessful appeal hack to buUete ; that there can be no successful
appeal except to ballots themselves at succeeding elections.
Such will be a great lesson of peace ; teaching men that what
they can not take by an election, neither can they take it by a
Tar ; teaching all the folly of being the beginnen of a war.
Xicst there be qorae uneasiness in the minds of candid men
as to what is to be the course of the Government towards the
Southern States after the Rebellion shall have been suppreeged,
the Executive deems it proper to say it w^ be his purpose
then, as ever, to be guided by the CunstltutJOD and the laws;
and that he probably will have no diflerent understanding of
the powers and duties of the Federal Government relatively to
the rights of the States and the people under the Ckinstitution
than that expressed in the Inaugural Address.
He denres to preserve the Government, that it may be ad-
ministered for all as it was administered by the men who made
it Loyal ciljzens everywhere have the right to claim this of
their Government, and the Government has no right to withhold
or neglect it It is not perceived that, in giving it, there is any
coercion, any conquest, or any subjugation, in any just sense
of those terms.
The Constitution provides, and all the States have accepted
the provision, that " the United States shall guarantee to every
State in this Union a republican form of government." But
if a State may lawfully go out of the Union, having done so,
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ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 45
it may aleo diacord the republican form of govennnent; k that
to prevent its going out ia an indiepensible meant to the end
of maintaining the guaranty meotioned ; and when an end ie
lawful and obligatory, the indiBpensable means to it are also
lawful and obligatory.
It was with the greatest regret that the Executive found the
duty of employing the war-power io de&nse ' of tbe Govern*
ment, forced upon him. He could but perform this duty, or
surrender the existence of the Government. No compromise
by public servants could, in this case, be a cure; not that
compromises are not often proper, but that no pt^uiar govern-
ment can long survive a marked precedent that those who carry
an election can only save the Government from immediate de-
struction by giving up the main point upon which the people
gave the election.. The people themselves, and not their serv-
ants, can safely reverse their own deliberate decisions.
As a private citizen, tbe Executive could not have con-
sented that these institutions shaU perish; much lew could he,
in betrayal of so vast and so sacred a trust as these free people
had confided to him. He felt that he had no inoral right to
shrink, nor even to count tbe chances of his Own life, in what
might follow. In full view of his great responsibility, he has,
so far, done what he has deemed his duty. You will now, ao-
cording to your own judgment, perform yours. He sincerely
hopes that your views and your action may so accord with
his as to assure all faithful citizens, who have been disturbed
in their rights, of a cert^a and speedy restoration to them,
under the Constitution and the laws.
And having thus chosen our course, without guile and with
pure purpose, let us renew our trust in God, and go forward
without fear, and with manly hearts.
■ JuLT 4, 1861.
This simple and brief message introduces no sub-
ject but the one in every man's month, the Rebell-
ion ; and gives a clear view of the progress of the
conspiracy and the condition and demands of the
country . at that moment. The message in a few
ovGoO'^lc
46 LIFE ABD TIMES OF
words disposes of the political nighttnare, habeas cor-
pus, and lis sententiously handles several other ques-
tions in the destiny of the Republic brought to the
test by the struggle for its overthrow. The lo}'al
part of the country looked with profound interest
upon this message, and approved it by word and
deed. As in his Inaugural Address Mr, LinccJn had
earnestly attempted to remove erroneous impressions
touching the policy of his Administration in dealing
with the South and slsvery, so now he deemed it
necessary to offer further conciliation to the South,
and especially to that "rear-guard of the Rebellion"
sprinkled through the North nnd now arrayed against
every step of the Government, in Congress, as. to his
treatment of the South after the suppression of the
Rebellion. In few words the message disposes of
the utterly unstatesman-like, unpatriotic, foolish, and
contemptible neutrality scheme of some of the border
Slave States, notably Kentucky.
One or two very undignified expressions found
their way into the message, and their appearance
there can not be justified by any poverty of the
American (English) language, or in any want of
gravity in the subject; nor is it agreeable to hunt
an apology for them in the peculiar character of their
author. " Too thin " and " sugsir-coateii " are ex-
pressions hardly to be looked for in a Presidential
message, at any time. Mr. F. B. Carpenter makes
the following statement about this matter : —
" Mr. Defrees, the GovernmeDt Printer, told me that,
when the message was being printed, he was a good deal
ovGoO'^lc
ABBAHAH LINOOLN. 47
disturbed by the nae of the term ' aagar-coated,' and finally
went to the President aboat it. Their relations to each
other being of the most intimate character, he told Mr.
Lincoln frankly that he ought to remember that a message
to Congress was a dilTerent affair from a speech at a mass-
tneeting in Illinois; that the message became a part of
history, and should be written accordingly. ' What is the
matter now?' inquired the President 'Why,' said Mr.
Defrees, ' yea have used an undignified expression in the
message;' and ,then, reading the paragraph aloud^ he
added, ' I would alter the structure of that, if I were you.'
'Defrees,' replied Mr. Lincoln, 'that word expresses ex-
actly my idea, and I um not going to change it. The time
will never come in this country when the people won't
know exactly what sugar-coated means.' "
Mr. Lincoln here refers to the charge made against
him of violating provisions of the Constitution be
was sworn to execute faithfully. Tbia charge was
made n& to the suspension of the writ of habeaa cor-
pu9. It was made in reference to his providing for
the increase of the regular army; and, indeed, the
people engaged in the Rebellion, and their virulent-
spirited friends in the North looked upon every step
of the Administration as unconstitutional. " Uncon-
stitutional" was the cry from the beginning of the
war to the end of it. This was one of the most re-
markable features of the Rebellion, one of the strangest
hallucinations of that evil time. Even Jeffeison
Davis and other Southern writers still talk with the
ntmost composure of Mr. Lincoln's unconstitutional
acts. In the strange philosophy that controlled the
minds of the rebel lenders only their own acts were
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48 LIFE AND TtHES OF
Constitutional and right. Secession was right, and
everything involved under it, from the theft of a
Springfield rifle to piracy on the " high sens," from
the destruction of the property of the Nation to the
destruction of the Nation itself; the ignoring of the
Constitution imd h11 laws to the setting up of a system
in defiance of the Government and the will of the
majority of the whole people. And yet these men
talked of the unconstitutional courae of the Adminis-
tration and its loyal supporters; and'in Congress, from
the short session of the Senate in March, 1861, to
the assassination of President Lincoln, there always
were a few men constituting the most pestiferous and
nefarious part of the Northern rear contingent of the
Rebellion who opposed persistently every act of legis-
lation and every purpose and step of the Executive
looking to the restoration of the Union. Newspaper
articles and even books were written on "illegal im-
prisonments," "illegal arrests," and other " illegal "
acts of the Administration. A hue and cry rang
from Maine to Missouri if the authorities raised a
hand to suppress a loud-mouthed sympathizer and
busy, secret aider and abettor of the Rebellion ! The
liberties of the American people were lost! Personal
liberty was a mockery in the land of the free ! Even
from the South, where every form of national law had
been set at defiance, and the will of the Richmond
managers become the only law, strangely enough echo
everywhere persistently answered this unreasonable
cry from the North. In a conspiracy all things are
fair, and on this principle the Southern leaders and
ovGoO'^lc
ABBAHAU IIHCOLN. 49
{heir fiieads in the North acted from (he beginning
of James Buchaoau's Administi-atioD, indeed for a
quarter of a century before, until the death of shivery
and the virtual overthrow of the utterly false polit-
ical, sodal, and moral sentiments on which the sys-
tem was founded and maintaiued.
To talk of the Administration observing the Con-
stitution or any of the laws of the United States
under it in deiding with the Rebellion, was then and
always has been folly to even eveiy-dtty commou
sense and paMotism. The lUbelUoQ set them aside,
and refused to hear or obey them, and to attempt to
apply them to it would have been idiocy and siiicide
on the part of the Government authorities. The Ad-
ministration was only bound to use the instruments
of self-preservation for the Government, all of them,
without reference to Constilntion or laws. Forced
war created its own conditions, and nothing could
rightfully modify these but the spirit of Christian
civilization. If it was right to preserve Uiis Nation,
it was right to attempt to do it by every means at
all countenanced by such civilization.
What the President did in reference to the loyal
States was rightfully done under the sanction of the
Constitution as far as the state of rebellion permitted
such a course, and no patriot, no loyal man, ever had
any real groand of complaint, or any disposition to
complain. .Modified as explained here, there was but
one law which the Administration was bound to re-
spect in the least and greatest act: the interests of
the Nation require it, the public good demands it.
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60 LIFE AND TIMES OF
Although the ionocent sometimes uimvotdably suf-
fered, arbitrary arrests and imprisoaments were
founded upoD this principle, and they were perfectly
light among the other means of putting down the
Rebellion. No man's personal liberty whs to be
placed for a moment in the scale against the life or
good of the Nation. Barring the mistakes of the
Government of the United States, none but evil-doers
then suffered, or ever have snffered, from its hands,
and suffering should be the lot of the eviMoer.
No government is worthy of a moment's respect
which tolerates the demoniacal sentiment that any
man or community has a right to do anything he
pleases. Under a Chiistian^ or even a moral civilized
polity, no man is free to do anything but what shall
conduce to the general good, or the good of the indi-
vidual, or be in itself right. The demon of madness
or badness no government and people have any right
to respect.
Notwithstanding the cry of " military despotism,"
of "usurpations" in the Administration, & far more
despotic system was set up by the rebel managers
at Richmond. First went to the ground State Rights,
the principle on which secession was based, and then
followed the liberties of the sovereigns, the people.
But all this was right, if the Rebellion was what it
was claimed to be, a government. And even being
what it was, it was but reasonable to suppose that
it would use the obvious means of success, that it
would remove from ita path elements of mischief or
poisonous influences. The imprisonment and hard-
ovGoO'^lc
J, Google
-LIFE Aim TIMEEt OF
CHAPTER III.
1861— WAR OF THE REBELLION— " THIRTY-SEVENTH CON-
GRESS"—EXTRA SESSION— A FEW NAMES IN THE
"REAR-GUARD"— POLITICAL GENERALS— THE NEGRO,
HIS RELIGION— " CONTRABAND OF WAR"— THE AD-
MINISTRATION AND THE ARMY DEALING WITH SLAV-
ERY—GENERAL BUTLER.
CONGRESS at onoe pledged itself to engage in no
legislation not designed for the called session as
indicated in the President's message, and the House
showed the spirit by which it was actuated in pass-
ing the following resolution offered by John A. Mo-
Cleroand, a Democrat, from Illinois : —
"This Houae hereby pledges iteelf to vote for any
amount of money and any number of men which may be
necessary to insnre a speedy and effectual suppression of
the Kebellion, and the permanent restoration of the Fed-
eral authority everywhere within the limits and jurisdic-
tioD of the United States."
Against this resolution there were five votes, two
from Kentucky, two from Missouri, and one from
New York. The Senate subsequently passed a sim-
ilar resolntion, J. G. Breckinridge opposing. Tire
' first few days in the House were spent in consider-
ing the question of disputed seats, and in decid-
ing upon the case of Vit^nia as represented by men
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64 UTE AND TIMES OF
landigham proposed this startling and ridicoloos
addition : —
"Provided, however, that no part of the money hereby
appropriated shall be employed in gubjugating, or holding
as a conquered province, any sovereign State now or lately
one of the United States; nor in abolishing or interfecing
with African slavery in any of the States."
William Allen, in campaign parlance known as
"Rise-up William Allen," of Ohio, offered this
resolution : —
"Jteaolved, That it is no part of the object of the pres-
ent war against the rebellious States to interfere with the
institution of slavery therein."
This piece of drivel was simply mled as out of
order. To the bill for the reorganization of the
army, L. Powell, of Kentucky, proposed the following
wonderful addition : —
" And be it further enacted, that no part of the army
or navy of the United States shall be employed or used in
subjugating or holding as a conquered province any sover-
eign State now or lately one of the United States."
John Sherman, of Ohio, offered this amendment
to Powell's proposition : —
" And be it fiirther enacted, that the purposes of the '
military establishment provided for in this act are to pre-
serve the Union, to defend the property, and to maintain
the Constitutional authority of the Government."
This was passed with four dissenting votes, the
Senators from Kentucky and Missouri. Whereupon
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ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 56
Joho C. Breckinridge immediately presented this
addition : —
" But the army and navy shall not be employed for the
pDrpoae of sabjugating any State, or reducing it to the con-
dition of a Territory or province, orto abolish slavery
therein.
But this nas rejected by a vote of thirty to nine.
During the debates on this l^Il the slavery ques-
tion was quite extensively discussed, and especially
as a cause, or the cause, of the war; as was also the
new insincere and foolish distinction between the co-
ercion of a ^tate and the coercion of a State's rebell-
ious citizens. On this momentous subject Mr. 0. A.
Browning, of Illinois, said : — ■
"I will not stop to deal with technicalities; I care
not whether yon call it the subjugation of the people or
the snbjugation of the State, where all the authorities of a
State, where all the officers, who are the embodiment of
the power of the State, who speak for the State, who rep-
resent the government of the State, where they are all
disloyarand banded in treasonable confederation against
this Government, I, for one, am for suhjugatiog them;
and you may call it the subjugation of the State, or of the
people, just 08 you please."
There never was the shadow of a ground for an
argument or distinction on this point, and the men
who talked it were simply insincere or foolish. Where
there were no people there ■yas no State, and the ad-
ministration in a State, by no mere political me-
tonjrmy, the world over, stands for the State.
Mr. Sherman, of Ohio, in speaking of the purpose
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LIFE AND TOIBS OB
he war, and denying that the AdministmUtHi
itated the abolitioD of slavery through it, said : —
It is not waged for any auoh purpose, or with any
view. They have all disclaimed it. Why then does
Senator (Powell) insist upon it? I will now say, and
^aator may make the most of it, that, rather than
□e eiDgle foot of this country of ours torn from the
nal domain by traitors, I will myself see the slaves
'ee; but at the same time I utterly disclaim any pur-
of that kind. If the men who are now waging war
«t the Government, fitting ont pirates against our
nerce, going back to the old mode of warfare of the
le ages, should prosecute this Kebellion to such an
It that there ia no way of conquering South Carolina,
nstance, exoept by emancipating her slaves, I say
icipate her slaves and con<]ner her rebellious citizens;
f they have not people there enough to elect mem-
of Congress, we will send people there."
'urther on, in discussing the bill for confiscating
erty used in the Rebellion, Thaddeus Stevens
I warn Southern gentlemen that, if this war is to
nue, there will be a time when my friend from New
; (A. S. Diven) will see it declared by this free Nation
svery bondman in the South, belonging to a rebel —
teot, I confine it to them — shall be called upon to aid
war against their masters, and to restore this Union."
Jr. Vallandighnm proposed to make the following
inding addition to the bill for calling ont an army
ilf a million men : —
Prwided, Jvriher, that before the President shall have
ight to call out any more volunteers than are now ia
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ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 57
the service, he shall appoint seven commisBioners, vhose
mieeioD it shall be to accompany the army on its march, to
receive and consider such propositiona, if any, as may at
any time be submitted by the executive of the so-called
Confederate States, or of any of them, looking to a sus-
pension of hostilities, and the return of said Btates, or any
of tbem, to the Union, or to obedience to the Federal Con-
stitution and authorities."
This person also introduced some resolutions con-
demning the increase of the army, the blockade of
Southern ports, the seizure of telegraph dispatches,
the arbitrary arrests of persons giving aid and comfort
to or suspected of complicity with the rebels, and
most acts of the Government authorities; and bitterly
opposed the bill for legalizing all the nets of the Pres-
ident, rendered necessary by the progress of the Re-
bellion previous to the meeting of Congress.
So throtighout this short session, ending on the
6th of August, these misguided and unwise men in
vain attempted to place every obstruction possible in
the way of the Administration, or to divert legislation
into unreasonable and injurious channels. Prominent
amoi^ these men were John C. Breckinridge and most
of the Senators and Representatives from the border
Sl:iye States, with such men as Vallnndigham, George
H. Pendleton, William Allen, Jesse D. Bright, S. S.
Cox, D. W. Voorhees, and others of less note» While
it may be held that some of these men were patriotic-
ally aiming at the best interests of the-whole country,
two things are true and always have been true about
them, namely: that their course in Congress gave
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68 LIFE ASD TIMES OF
hope and courage to the rebel cause, and to some
extent weakened and disturbed the Administration
and the loyal supporters of the Government; and
that had any great per cent, or all of their proposed
measures, been sanctioned by Congress and carried out -
by the Administration and the people, the Rebellion
would have succeeded, the Republic been destroyed,
and political anarchy inaugurated in this country.
Some of these men greatly modified their course sub-
sequently^ buC there were always a few of them in
Congress, and their influence, however trifling, pointed
in the wrong direction ; and, to a large extent, they
constituted the head of that small column of North-
ern men who formed throughout the war a sort of
Northern contingent of the , Rebellion, and whose
main duty it was to obstruct the way of the national
army and fire upon its rear. Some exceedingly
worthy men at other periods of tiieir lives, now and
then, dropped out of this column, while others re-
mained in it, throwing the most notable part of their
existence into the history of the Rebellion, the most
inexplicflble, indefensible, and oflfensive page of which
is that telling their deeds and connecting their names
with it.
There was but one thing for Congress to do at
this time, and that it did, prepnre for war. On the
22d of ^Tuly, the following resolution, introduced by
John J. Crittenden, of Kentucky, was passed without
noteworthy opposition : —
" Resdved, By the House of RepreamtaUves of the Qm-
greaa of the United ^ates, That the present deplorable civil
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ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 69
war bus been foreed apon the country by the disunionists
of the Southern States now in revolt ag&inst the Constitu-
tional Government, and in arms around the Capital ; that
in this national emergency Congrees, banishing all feeling
of mere passion or resentment, will recollect only its duty
to the whole country ; that this war is not waged on our
part in any spirit of oppression, nor for any purpose of
ooDquest or subjugation, nor purpose of overtbrowing or
interfering with the rights or established inatitntions of
the States, bat to defend and maintain the supremacy of
the Constitution, and to preserve the Union, with all the
dignities, equality, and rights of the several States unim-
paired ; and that as soon as these objects are accomplished
the war ought to cease."
No special session of Congress had ever been
more important and none ever did the work before
it more expeditiously and satisfactorily. It sanc-
tioned and legalized the acts of the President, pro-
Tided for the payment of the militia and volunteers
that had been called out, anthorized the Preuident
to organize another army not over five hundred
thoDsand "strong, and laid down the necessary pro-
visions for its organization; it provided for the col-
lection of the revenue, declaring rebel ports closed,
and the forfeiture of the vesels owned by rebels ; it
authorized a Tast national loan, and made appropria-
tions for the army and navy, and tbe civil service,
then supposed to be sufficient for the emergency; it
provided for the incrense of the regular army, for the
purchase of.arms, and the increase of the navy, to in-
demnify the States for their outlay in arming the
three months' men, and for punishing conspiracies and
piracy ; it provided for the increase of the rate of pay
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60 LIFE AND TIMES OF
for soldiers, for the coDstnictioo of war vessels ; and
it provided for the coofiscHtion of property used in
the RebeUion, and ia particular the foifeiture forever
after of all claims on the part of rebels to slaves
used Id any way to the beoefit of the Rebellioa.
It was the great misfortuae of the Gbvemnient at
the beginning and for the first buir of the war that a
targe per cent of army officers was drawn froni the
various ranks of civil life, and wholly without mili-
tary experience. This misfortune was very materially
increased by the fact that most of these inexperienceit
general officers were politicians, who, besides being
patriots and acting as such, seldom lost sight of their
own political chances in the future. A regular and
irregular business of these o£Bcers, in season and out
of season, was hanmguing the soldiera; and the op-
portunity of snatching an advantage to win a victory
or complete a triumph od many a battle-field was
lost by the faculty of these men to make speeches.
In an analysis of General G-rant's successful military
career, the most admirable and first observable fea-
ture is the absence of speeches and verbose and ex-
travagant proclamations. And not until the Nation
got at the head of its armies generals, not politicians,
men who were soldiers by habits of mind and life,
and who left political considerations entirely out of
their estimates of war power for crushing the Re-
bellion, and who preferred even to sign their orders
by the points of their swords, there was little or no
advance made toward the end in view. Yet, in the
general oondact of the war, political considerationB
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ABSAHAH UNOOLN. 61
could not be wholly ignored. The value of the bor-
der Slave St&tes in the contest, and the tender re-
gard of the. AdminiBtration for their loyal people,
gave rise to the oudecided and temporizing polioy
pursued in referenoe, to them, but that the evil of
the policy waa more than the good may well be
doubted. The inevitable necessity of events, and
not the disposition of the Administration, in the
course of time changed this policy quite as soon )ls
the power of the Government was available for the
execution of a more determined and aoldierly new
one. It was difficult for the Administration and the
country to distinguish between political and military
necessities, and the disposition was general to test
every step by old party standards. The conduct'of
the Administration and the loyal people could hnve
been viewed in no other light, disinterestedly, than
that it was the Republican party which was on trial
in a test for an extended lease on the administration
of Uie Grovernment. All liieae things now, when
looked at by tbemaelves, appear tike misfortunes
great enough to have ruined the noblest cause- But
their importance, to some extent, disappears, and
their evil influence was lost, in the fa<;t that the af-
fairs of the Rebellion were conducted on the same plan.
One of the wisest features of the Military Bill of
the special session of Congress was the provision for
officering the volunteers to some extent with regu-
larly educated soldiers, and bringing portions of the
regular troops in contact with the vast volunteer
army. At the time the war began it was supposed
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62 UFE AND TIUES OF
that about twelve hundred and fifty graduates of
West Point were living, and over eight hundred of
them were yet coiinected with the army. Only one-
fifth of these Went over to the Rehellion. Of those
who returned to civil pursuits, a gi-eater proportion
was believed to be disloyal. Still this left a lai^e
body of educated military men to become the drill-
masters and disciplinarians, and finally the successful
leaders of the magnificent armies of the Republic.
In the navy the proportion of officers who I'emained
loyal was somewhat greater, and among the men of
both army and navy there were few who ever became
untrue to the country.
Although there was a strong disposition at first
to keep the negro out of the war, the possibility of
doing fio became evidently less day by dny. He
had constituted the chief political theme too long to
be set aside so easily at the outset of a great conflict
based entirely upon the question whether he should
some time be free or forever remain a slave. Yery
different ideas existed in the two sections as to the
course the negro would himself choose, and as far as
practicable, carry out during the struggle.
About the almost universal desire among the
slaves for freedom, there was no mistake, but it was a
great error on the part of the North to suppose that
they would constitute a source of internal weakness
which would in itself go far toward the destruction
of the Rebellion. The Southern leaders were better
acquainted with the condition and character of their
slaves. They feared do insurrections. And from the
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ABRAHAM UNCOLN. 63
day the first war n6te was sounded, this vast element
of strength to the Rebellion was brought inlo requisi-
tion. There was no hesitanuy about what should be
done with the negro. While there was no thought
of clothing him as a black knight and sending him
forth to fight and win the right to forge an eternal
chain for himself, with the spade and ax in his hands
4ie was to bear the brunt of hardships, to lighten and
ennoble the deeds of a race of chiTalrous masters.
He was to be the faithful guardian of the home when
its lord was on the battle-field; he was to till the
soil, and whiten the spacious plantations with cotton,
still declared to be king, nnd erroneously set down
as the unfailing source of wealth to back the Re-
beUion, and without which it must ultimately fail, no
matter what else it might have to recommend it or
bring to its aid. As to cotton, the rebels missed
their calculations entirely, the very effective block-
ade of their ports by the Government, early forcing
them to abandon its culture, to a great extent, to
raise the grain they expected to import for the sup-
port of the army and country. The eflfectiveness of
the blockade and the failure of their hopes as to
cotton were well demonstrated by the fact that at
the end of the war, in an utterly bankrupt country,
there were found several millions of dollars' worth
of the great staple which it had been impossible to
convert into money, war material, or provisions.
But the negroes never betrayed their old masters.
They only did one thing when they could, they ran
away. As to the outcome of this step there seemed
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64 UFE Am> HUES OF
to be little concern. It was the way to freedom ;
and that implied everything good iu the world which
they bad never been able to taste. These slaves
were divided into two classes by their pursuits and
by their intellectual attainments : servants about the
house and in mechanical pursuits, and field-hands of
both sexes. As they approached the persons of their
masters and came more in close relations with the*
whites, their skins became lighter, and their faces
and forms became more perfect and pleasing, and
their mental development and civilization were ad-
vanced. In both classes the negroes were fitithful,
mainly, to their masters' homes, which they always
regarded as their own, and were more or less proud
of them, according to the standing and wealth of the
master, whose name they bore.
In all the arguments and talks, mainly foolish,
great and entirely undue stress was always put upon
the Christian civilization of the Africiin by his en-
slavement in this country. And for the fine results
reached in this way, of course, the credit has been
chiefly given to the women and the clergy. The
man who has lived in the South, or who has traveled
well there, has made little use of his faculties, or
had none for use which were worthy of respectable
consideration, who has not observed and thought of
ihe sham there is about negro morals, negro piety,
and everything in the outward manifestation of negro
Christian civilization. Follow a negro "revival meet-
ing," in and out, for one week, even to-day no farther
south than the famous Blue Grass region of Ken-
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ABRAHAM UNCOLN. 6S
tuoky, and then say that there is not something
amazingly grotesque aboot it ; that this much-lauded
Christian civilization into which the poor African has
been elevated is not the moat absurdly and disgust-
ingly grotesque, if not blasphemous and infamous, of
all human burlesques; with only one mitigating cir-
cumstance, that it is better than nothing.
I do not, however, blame these people for their
low grade of Christianity, but I shall never stand
up Hs a warm eulogist of those who taught it. It is
true that the simplest or highest thing which a child
or a man of any grade can learn may be taught so
as to take the most re0ned and elevated form; but
it was never meant to teach the slave even the poor
degree of religions iatelligence and refinement known
to the master. A higher idea of Ood he never reached
than of a very nH-seeing or very exacting " master."
That view of it was best for all concerned. It was
Dot uncommon for the so-called religious slaves to
represent themselves in the most foolish wnys, as
holding frequent intercourse with the devil as a mon-
strooa or personal form of evil, or with God in some
form, and their theology was of the rudest, wildest,
and most sensual kind. The fine morals of Chris-
tianity they were never taught, and did not possess.
With the signs and forms of Christianity learned by
example, police regulations, and otherwise, they mixed
strange and inconsistent conduct. Their coarse, so-
called, religious ecstasies were often mere cloaks and
farces. After months of hard teaching the pious
missionary asked his Fiji Island parishioners what,
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UFE A14D TIUES OF
after all, was the highest end of man, and received
for a deliberate reply : " To steal oxen."
Many years ago I met a Winnebago Indian on the
Minnesota River, and,arter the usual salnte, be invited
me to go ashore and play a game of cards, adding the
observation that he was an honest mua and ii good
giimbler. He was unable to see any iacongiiiity in
this brief eulogy. Was the Christian civilization of
slavery much more than this? Put it all, or the rem-
nants of it, to-day in the scales against a life of un-
restrained, savage freedom, and how would the matter
iatrinsically stand?
But to resume the main point designed for this
chapter. It was the sincere desire of the Adminis-
tration at the outset, and for months subsequently,
to put down the Rebellion without annoyance from
the slavery question. Mr. Lincoln would have been
glad if he could have restored the Union as it was
in this particular, as well as others. Although he
had sflid this Nation could not exist part slave and
part free, he would not have settled the question
in his time, perhaps, but put it in the way of
certain settlement in the course of years by the
consent of the people. Mr. Lincoln had no enthu-
siasm about this negro question, and was only con-
ditionally a friend of the negro raoe. The whole
matter was thrust upon him. He approached it with
extreme caution, and got more credit, perhaps, for
his final course than his original inclination' or actual
motive justified.
The troops under the President's first call were
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ABRAHAM USCOUS. . 67
especiiilly noted niao for similar caution in deflling
with the negro. Buraside and other officei's to whom
slaves applied to be protected returned them to their
masters, or refused to accept them in the ciimps, and
in West Virginia McClellan appeared as a very cham-
pion of slavery, and seemed to be willing to turn his
bayonets upon slaves who dared to mistake his army
as the way to freedom. In this matter General
McClellan had a jiolicy, if the Administrution and
nobody eUe seemed to have.
But Congress entered its protest against engaging
the army in the business of catching and returning
fugitive slaves, and this infernal subject was evidently
not to be quieted at the beginning of a war started
on its account.
In May General Benjamin F. Butler, who had so
efiecta»lly squelched the Rebellion in Maryland, but
who had not done it in accordance with General
Scott's very politic and conciliatory views, was sent
down to Fortress Monroe, in some respects the most
important military post in the Nation. In returning
from his first warlike excursion from Hampton, after
taking possession of that place his anny was followed
by many slaves, who had been deserted by their
masters, or who had been employed in the rebel
works, and these General Butler at once declared to
be " contraband of war," and refused to deliver them
to rebel owners. This matter, so easily disposed of
at first by this lawyer-general, became in a short time
a complex and serioos question. And, recognizing
the Uck of any policy on the part of the Adminia*
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68 LIFE AND TIMES OF
trattoQ covering the maHer, in the forms in which it
was likely to appear, od the 30th of July, 1861,
Butler wrote to the Secretary of War, fully present-
ing the "contraband" question as it occurred to him
then, and as he believed the Administration would
hare to see sooner or later. He said that a large
number of slave men, women, and children hud col-
lected at Hampton, and he had employed the men
on the fortifications, and the women washed and
marketed for the camp ; that when Hampton was
abandoned, all these bhicks appealed to him for pro-
tection; imd that nine hundred of them were then in
the camp. He then asked: What shall be done with
them ? What is their state and condition t Are they
slaves? Are they free? Is their condition that of
men, women, and children, or of property? or is it a
mixed relation? He said their status under the Con-
stitution and laws was well known ; but then, he
asked, what was the effect of a state of war and re-
bellion on that status ? He stated that in adopting
the plan of treating them as " contraband of war," on
the ground of being property to be used in aid of the
Rebellion, he considered the matter ns standing on a
right and legal basis.
But the case now presented new aspects. Were
they property? Their owners had run away and de-
serted them to starve, themselves to engage in the
Eebellion. If they were still property, were they
not the property of their saviors, against whom the
rebellious owners were at war? But these saviors
had different views about the matter, and would not
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ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 69
hold them as property. Then, did not their property
status cease 7 Hie reasoning led him, he suid, to re-
gard them as free. He referred to the order m Gen-
eral McDowell's army forbidding slaves entering the
lines, or being harbored in any way, and wanted to
know if this was to be the practice of all the armies
for the war. If so, there then would arise questions
as to who were slaves, who were not, how the many
difficulties arising would be decided, and who would
decide them. If the rule was to be general, as a
soldier he would enforce it as best he could. But
in a loyal State he would put down slave insur-
rections; in a rebellious one he would confiscate
the slaves, and all else which the rebel would use
as a force against the power of the GJovemment, and
if it turned out that these confiscated slaves went
free, it would be a matter little to be regretted or
discussed.
On the 8th of August Mr. Cameron answered this
letter. He said the President desired nil existing
rights of the States to be respected; that the war
was for tbe preservation of the Union, with all the
rights of the States intact ; hence there could be no
question as to these fugitives from labor in States
where the authority of the Union was in full force.
But in rebellious States, the military exigencies stood
before the rights of States and citizens, if these rights
were not wholly forfeited by the Rebellion ; and
that by tiie act of the session of Congress, just closed,
the right of persons in rebellion to slaves used in
furthering the Rebellion was discharged.
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70 LIFE AND TIMES OP
The foartii section of this Confiscation Act read : —
"Whenever hereafter, during the present insurrection
against the Government of the United States, any person
claimed to be held to labor or service under the law of any
State, shall be required or permitted by the person to whom
auch labor or service is claimed to be due, or by the lawful
^ent of such person, to take up arms against the United
^tes, or shall be required or permitted by the person to
whom such labor or service is claimed to be due, or his
lawful agent, to work or to be employed in or upoo any
fort, navy-yard, dock, armory, ship, intreochmeot, or in
any military or naval service whatsoever, against the Gov-
eromeDt and lawful authority of the United States, then,
and in every such case, the person to whom such tabor or
service is claimed to he due shall forfeit his claim to such
labor, any law of the State or of the United States to the
contrary ootwitbetanding. And whenever thereafter the
person claiming such labor or service shall seek to enforce
his claim, it shall be a full and sufficient answer to such
claim that the person whose service or labor is claimed
had been employed in hostile service against the Govern-
ment of the United States, contrary to the provisions of
this Act."
The Secretary ackfiowledged the great inconven-
ience which might surroond the case in determining
between the loyal and the disloysl, and concluded
that, on the whole, the rights of all would be best
subserved hy receiving all '' contrabands " that came,
of necessity or without invitation, and employing
them as the circumstances might require, at the same
time keeping a record of them, to enable Congress at
the end of the war to compensate the deserving and
amicably adjust the whole matter. According to
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ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 1l
tills timid and impossible plan Genenil Butler was
requested to conduct himself, not allowing any inter-
ference with the sliivea of loyal masters, or prevent-
ing any who might desire returning to their old
homes.
General Wool, who took command at Fortress
Monroe, a month or two afterwards issued an order re-
quiring these slaves to be paid, the men eight, and the
women foar dollars per month and fed and clothed,
while they were employed by the Government. This
plan was soon, for a time, adopted throughout Ihe
army; and to General Butler the credit of putting
the Administration in the way to any policy at all
on this evil subject was due.' From his fruitful brain
at Fortress Monroe sprang the exceedingly conven-
ient term "contraband," which went into the general
speech of the country as the conciliatory tind humor-
OOB designation of the fugitive slave, indeed of the
whole of the "peculiar institution" of the South.
The plan of employing these slaves, registering their
names, names of their owners, time of service, and
go on, was one of immense labor, and one which, after
occnpying the time of a good-sized army itself, would
have led ultimately to inextricable difficulties to the
country. But all this ended by the famous Emanci-
pation Froclamattoii and the continuation of the
Rebellion.
The war had scarcely began, indeed, until a great
change came over the " institution." It was to be
readily seen that a separation of the Union was not
going to bind the slave forever, or rear an impene-
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72 LIFE AND TIHE8 OF
trable wall betwee^n him aad freedom. Who had
any light now to expect the execution of the Fur-
tive Slave Law, and who had any right or disposition
to waat to execute it? Thousands now flocked
across the vast Free-State border, and no record of
them was even taken which would aid in reituming
them to slavery. Where one escaped in time of
loyal peace, hundrals now went, never to be returned.
It appears that from 1840 to 1860 but one thousand
and eleven slaves escaped into freedom from all the
Slave States; and from 1850 to 1860, only eight
hundred and three, notwithstanding the constant
political turmoil on the subject of the abuse of the
fugitive law in the North, and the everlasting cry
from the South of the impossibility of her holding
and perpetuiiting her rights (negroes) in the Union.
How was the case now ?
General Butler's name was so connected with this
" contraband " question from the outset of the war
almost, that it would have lived in its history had
he never lived to bear the distinction of " Beast
Butler" at New Orleans. Although he was not an
able and successful military chief, as an ingenious and
skillful political general his record was unique and
exceedingly interesting, and from the day he entered
Maryland to the end he kept the rebels in mind of
his power and enmity to their purposes. In propor-
tion to their hatred of him, did he grow in the &vor
of his Northern friends.
:b,GoO'^lc
CHAPTER IV.
i86t -WAR OF THE REBELLION— PROGRESS OF THE REBELS
AT HOME AND ABROAD— McCLELL AN AT THE HEAD OF
THE UNION ARMY—" ALL QUIET ON THE POTOMAC "—
ROSECRANS IN WEST VIRCINIA-LYON AND FREMONT
. IN MISSOURI— BATILE OF WILSON'S CREEK— THE SEC-
RETARY OF WAR IN MISSOURI—THE BODY-GUARD.
ON the day of the bombardment of Fort Sumter,
JeffersOQ Davis called the rebel leaders to aa-
semble again at Montgomery, towards the last of the
same month. The insurrection had now, as far as
possible, assumed the form of a reguliiily executed
government. Mr. Davis's message to the legislative
body at this time was a singular mixture of artful
misrepresentations, but on the whole the most com-
plete presentation of his side from the well-known
Southern point of view. His main arguments were
that the Qovemment of the United States had de-
clared war against the seceding States because one
of them had fired on and captured Fort Sumter;
that the seceding States were only exercising their
"reserved rights;" that government by the majori-
ties was a fallacy; and, above all, the moat foolish .
thing ever uttered under pretentious circumstances,
that "All we ask is to be let alone." And one of
Mr. Davis's biographers, with childish simplicity,
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74 LIFE AND TIMES OF
says that in this message Mr. Davis actually "es-
tahtished the doctrine of secession." That was a
doctrine which could only be established by the
sword and bayonet and not by the power of the tongue,
and nobody believed otherwise in America or Europe
except the rebels in the South and their sympathizers
wherever they were found. That many of them held
to the doctrine as a mere pretense, there can be no
doubt. Those who did entertain it, with few ex-
ceptions, abandoned it, and no fitlse doctrine was ever
more completely and eternally annihilated than was
this in the downfall of the Kebellion. The puerility
with which Jefferson Davis yet seems to hold to it
is pitiable in the extreme.
On the 21st of May the "Congress" decided that
the next session of thtit body should be held in
Richmond, Vir^nia, beginning on the 20th of the
following month. >
This removal of the government seat was at first
opposed by Mr. Diivis, as it was also by many of the
Gulf-State leaders. But the Virginia authorities had
made this removal a condition of the secession of
that Stnte, and there was no apparent alternalive.
In the Union, Vii^nia was only satisfied in being
first, and well the Cotton State kings knew that she
would expect to tiLke this place in the ^'new govern-
ment." In the Gulf States, at least, there was,
probably, no thought that Richmond should remain
the permanent seat of the government, if there ever
should he one ; and the capture of Richmond without
the defeat and destruction of a great rebel army
ov Google
ABRAHAM UNCOLH. 75
would have been an event of . no great politionl or
Diilitai-y adgnificanee at any time during the wat*.
Not until the 22d of February, 1862, was Mr.
Davis inaugurated as permanent chief of the Ke-
heUion, the permanent " Congress," as it was termed,
having assembled the first time four days previously.
The opponents of the locaUon of the seat of gov-
ernment at Richmond were not, perhaps, justified in
any of their objections to the removal fr<»n Mont<
gomery, and doubtlessly saw afterwards that they
had been unwise. That Mr. Jefferson Davis did so
is quite certain. ■ The rebel capital was Ihrougbout
the war a matter of little or no importance only so
far as it eould be of the greatest possible advantage
to the rebels themselves in conducting their military
operatioM. Military success was "everything" with
them. There could have been little moral or polit-
ical loss to them in the loss of anything but victory
in battle. The selection of Richmond as the capital
aided materially in securing the earnest co-operation.
of a people who desired, if not deserved also, to be
the first defenders and sufferers in a bad cause, and
removed the power back of the army to the imme-
diate neighborhood of the lending acts in the drama.
The location of their capital at Richmond must doubt-
less be placed among the wise acts of the rebel
leaders. ,
The early enthusiasm of the South was at this
period somewhat broken by the unfavorable progress
of events during the fall and winter, to some extent,
as well as by a very wide-spread dissatisfaction with
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76 LIFE AUD TIMES OF
the condnat of the managers at Biohmond Bat the
" CoDgresB " held its sessioDs mainly in secret, and the
reins were constantly tightened in the hands of the
leaders. Until the buttle of Ball Run, the South
still hoped, against the most open dictates of common
sense, to be let alone.
"Jefferson Davis signed the order for the reduc-
tion of Fort Sumter, but he did not thereby invoke
the calamity of war. That act was simply the
patriot's defiance to the meuace of tyranny." Were
not the history of the Rebellion as written by its
defeuders and actors filled with such wordy nonsense,
this singular expression from one of Mr. Davis's
biographers might be given the place of honor in all
the annals of stupidity. But the writer of plain
matter-of-fact history can well afford to " let alone "
these mad apologists of the " Lost Cause."
As the reins were tighter drawn at Richmond the
dream of *' State sovereignty " faded away. To
prove and mdntain secession became a stupendous
undertaking, and the great mass of the people were
disappointed. But those who had begun the work
were not to be turned by complaints. A conscription
law was now enacted, taking all men not disabled be-
tween the ages of eighteen and thirty-five. And so
the States were stripped, and the will of the few or
the one at Richmond was found to be supreme. Still
another and more sweeping conscription act followed,
and compulsion took the plnce of volunteer enthusi-
asm. The rebel " Congress " kept pace with the will of
the executive, and as the measures of the National
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ABRAHA.H LINOOLN. 77
GoTemment became more galling, the legiektiTe
body, called "the Congress," declared its dieposition
to sanction any retaliatory stops, however severe,
which the " president " might adopt. The severe
meneures put in practice were not alone directed
tofjard the people on the north side of the slave-line.
All persons at home even suspected of being luke-
warm in the cause were summarily handled. With
all the pretensions of the Soathern politicians as to
State and personal liberty, there was no such thing
in the South. There never had been. The thoughts
of men were as offensive as their deeds, if they were
never expressed. For years before the outbreak of
the Rebellion there was no freedom in the South
except in the adoration and blessing of the cause of
slavery. Silent submission then and during the war
was no security against personal abuse.
Henry S. Foote, in writing of the imprisonment
of political and suspected persons, says : —
"As chairman of a special committee of the Cod-
iederate Congress, oi^anised at my own motion for the
parpom of inquiring into oases of illegal imprisonment, I
obtained from the superintendent of the prison-house in
Richmond, under the official sanction of the Department
of War itself, a gnm and shocking catalogue of several
hundred persons then in oon6nement therein, not one of
whom was charged with anjrthing bnt suspected infidelity,
and this, too, not upon oath in a single instanoe. Before
I ooold take proper steps to procnre ^e discharge of these
nohapi^ men, the second suspension of the writ of liberty
occnrred, and I presume that such of them as did not die
in jail, remained there until the &11 of Richmond."
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78 UFE AND TIMES OF
The same writer, who had as good gronnds on
which to justify himself for the piirt he took in fur-
thering or impeding the rebel cause, as any other
man, perhaps, says :—
" The Confiscation Act was oppoeed from the first io
tJie House of Repreaen tali Tea by a considerable number,
ineluding myself, alike upon the ground of its unconsti-
tutionality, injustice, and impolicy. This was carried also
in secret session, under the abominable ten-minutes rule,
which rule I labored in vain, session after session, to get
repealed, but which was retained by the votes of indi-
viduals justly apprehensive of the censures of an outraged
oonstitoency, should all the dark maohinatioos which had
their origin lo this disreputable conclave be ever made
known through tbe public, journals. The special sup-
porters of Mr. Davis were always ready to go into secret
session — a thing very easy to be effected, since a single
member moving for it had it in his power to bring about
the immediate closing of the doors.
"At the very last session of the Confederate Congress
the Confiscation Law was made still more cruel and
onerous, at the instance of individuals who have since
shown themselves more than willing to save their own
beloved estates from the forfeiture to which they were
formerly so ferociously inclined to subject others who
chanced to differ from them conseientionsly, both in refer-
ence to the feasibility and propriety of the scheme of
revolution. I do not know when niy feelings were more
outraged than they were only a few weeks anterior to the
vacation of my seat in the Gonfederate Congress, by the
heartless and unmanly attempt to confiscate the estates of
all absentees, unless they had gone, or should thereafter
go abroad with the oonsent of the Government ofBoials.
This was intended mainly to operate apon Dr. Duncan, of
Kew York, and others of that class, who had been
ovGoO'^lc
ABRAHAU UNOCH^. 79
sojonrning for Kveral years before the begioDing of the
■wax outside of the Confederate States, and who, it was
known, had very large posseasioDS in said States. It waa
ooofeesedly designed, likewise, to reach the estates of
oertaJD ladies of considerable property who had thought
proper to go to New York, to Philadelphia, or even
beyond tJie ocean, for the purpose either of avoiding tbe
horrors of internecine strife, or for the suitable education
of their infant lAildren, In looking back to the past, I
confess that I am yet full of surprise and indignation that
persons professing to be civilized men and Christians
should have dared to attempt the perpetration of this
donhle-damoed iniquity.
" It is well known that Mr. Davis and his cabinet
were origiaally opposed to the Conscription Law. They
were notoriously dragooned by a portion of the Cod-
iederatA press into a reeomtnendation of its adoption.
But when this rank, centralizing measure had been once
put in operation, these gentlemen were not slow in per-
ceiving bow, by means of its rigid euforoement, and the
general suspension of the writ of habeas curpnu, they
would be able to put down all opposition to their scheme
of despotic domination. It is a remarkable fact that, even
in the message of Mr. Davis, which first recommended
to the Confederate Congress a resort to this anti-Republi-
eao expedient, he declared that t^ere had been no abate-
ment whatever of the volunt«ering spirit, which still, he
said, rather needed repression than stimulation. How
strange must it not now seem to all reasonable men, that in
a war avowedly commenced by the people of the South for
their own safety exclnsively, it should have been deemed
allowable, even had the volunteering spirit then altc^ther
disappeared, to force the same people, under tbe most
harsh and dishonoring penalties, to continue the war
after they should have themselves grown weary of ita
pTDsecntiOD I
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80 UFB AST) TIMES OF
"It U a foot worthy of notice, that nearly all the
legislative enactmeata of the Confederate Congress most
deleteriouB in their operation upon State Bights and popu-
lar freedom originated wjth ultra State-Kights men, and
uUra Democrats in profession. One of the most maniaoal
and astounding propositions brought forward in that unfor-
tunate body was the one introduced about eighteen months
ago by Mr. Barksdale, of Mississippi, which was a bill to
establish martial law generally throughout the Confederate
States. The peculiar relations existing between this indi-
vidual and Mr. Davis fully justified the presumption that
this latter personage had been duly consulted before the
bringing into the legislative hall this worse then political
hydra. Did the Mountain party in the French Revolu-
tion ever manifest more ferocity than was indicated in this
movement ? Posterity will hardly believe the statement,
and yet is it absolutely true that the ultra secessionists,
who professed to have brought on the war ohiefly to
maintain the right of separate State secession, were the
first to deny the existence of any such right when certain
movements were understood to be in progress in North
Carolina looking to peaceful sece'ssion from the Con-
federate States themeelvee; and these persona urged most
vehemently the putting the whole country under military
law, in order to counteract all such attempts at with-
drawal. I well remember that certain fiery zealots from
the ' Old North State ' came to Richmond about two years
ago, and openly urged the sending of a military force at
once into that region, in order to suppress all efforts at
counter-revolution. This course of proceeding was even
oiged upon me. What response I made to these se-
ceeeioQ-anti-secession worthies I shall leave to others to
conjecture."
Mr. Pollard, in his " First Tear of the War," de-
clares that there was little opposition to the will of
ovGoO'^lc
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82 UFE AND TIUES OF
recklessness and credulity, or conntviince, of the rebel
authorities, and who were deserving of all the censure
they got, and who corresponded to a vei-y extensive
class of the same kind of people id the'North who
would have doubled the enormous debt of the
country, if by doing so they could have secured their
own fortunes, the cnse of merchants and even army
sutlers in the South was not so bad, and has pallia-
tion enough for conscience' sake. The case of the
trader was, indeed, most pitiable. What did it
matter that a pair of shoes, a poand of tobacco or
some other filth, brought him its weight in " Confed-
erate" currency? A pound of that enrrency was aa
valuable as a ton. The more any man got the poorer
he became, unless he stole it. If the trader parted
with a pound of his salt, a paper of pins, or a horse,
he was poorer for it, as one of these things was
worth more than all the currency or all the credit of
the '* Confederacy." The faitii of these men who
put their property, even their land, everything but
their negroes, into " Confederate money " was bound-
less and admirable ; but, like many of the faiths of
men, it lost its beauty by the unreasonableness or
the utter baselessness of its foundation.
One of the first sleps of Mr. Davis's government
was to attempt to make this currency good, apd es-
tablish diplomatic respectability in Europe. Commis-
sioners were sent over there to negotiate to this end.
And in this undertaking they were not wholly un-
successful. From the very dawn of secession both
England and France gave their sympathy to the
ov Google
ABRAHAM UNOOLN. 83
rebel cause, and itlthough nothing more was done by
the govemmeDta of those countries than to recognize
the belligerent rights of the rebel States (a step rest-
ing on principles as false as they were mischievous) ,
the attitude, to a great extent, assumed by the people
of England especially, prolonged the Rebellion, as
may be seen in a future chapter.
Previous to the battle of Bull Hun the rebel ex-
ecutive hod been authorized to accept from the States
in the Rebellion each volunteers as he deemed neces-
sary, and also empowered to call out one hundred
thousand militia. Early in August he was again
authorized to make a call on the militia, this time
for a force of four hundred thousand men. Not until
early the following spring was the first conscription
promulgiited. The work of organizing this force be-
gan effectively immediately after the fall of Fort
Sumter, and with great rapidity the whole border line
was occupied in what were supposed to be the main
strategic points. Magruder with a considerable force
was posted near Fortress Monroe ; Beauregnrd at
Manassas Junction, thirty-five miles from Washing-
ton; Joseph E.Johnston at Harper's Ferry; Leon-
idas Folk on the Mississippi ; and Sterling Price and
Ben McCulloch in Missouri. But the campaign of
the fall of 1861 was, in the main, not favoritble to
the rebel cause, and the cry of discontent was loud
throughout the South ; while from Washington went
constantly the unwelcome report that all was quiet
on the Potomac.
The battle of Bull Run was fought on the Govem-
ovGoO'^lc
84 UFE AND TIMES OP
meat side by the three months' militia, and a few
hundred regular soldiers, and soon after this dis-
astrous engagement most of these men returned to
their homes ; and ander the recent acts of Congress
the formation of a new ' and formidable army now
begun.
Many brave men on both sides had fallen ia the
first great battle of the war ; and although there
was, perhaps, little in the conflict at Bull Run to de-
velop the chanicter which the emergency needed in
the army, yet quite a number of men who fought
there in subordinate places, subsequently rose to de-
served distinction as soldiers. Among these miiy be
especially named W. T. Sherman and T. J. Jackson
("Stonewall" Jackson). The lending generals in
this engagement were not so fortunate. G. T. Beaure-
gard, the second in command on the rebel side, re-
ceived the greater part of the praise in the South ;
but himself and Johnston, the responsible general,
both soon fell into an endless quarrel with Davis,
and the people became dissatisfied nhen they cnme
to sum up the results, on account of the little which
bad been done by these men when, it was claimed,
their opportunity was so good. However General
McDowell's case stood, he was not deemed satisfac-
tory at the head of the army in the field in Uie
present state of affairs. If the judgment of the
country was not against him, it was not favorable to
him, and this the Administration could not overlook,
if it had desired to do so.
Among all the unknown and untried the Admin-
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8$ LIFE AND TIUES OF
Whea General McCIellaD took command on the
25th of July, immediately after the battle of Bull
Run, he found an armed multitude nearly fifty thou-
sand strong collected around Washingtoo, but to the
trained soldier it appeared little like an army. And
it was found that poor old Q-eneral Scott and his aids
had done little townrds prepiiring defensive works to
secure the National Capital against the shot and shell
of the enemy. Patriotic heat had yet made up for
all deQcieiicies ; the stem reaUties of the war were
approached with caution and reluctance.
When the new Administration began its task it
Was found that the regular army contaiued but little
over sixteen thousand men, and most of these had
been dispersed throughout the Indian border, render-
ing them unavailable on any crisis in national affairs.
The conspirators, during the last Administration, had
taken every other step possible to render the Govern-
ment powerless at the critical moment when the work
of secession should begin. So the organization and
equipment of the army became a work on original
materials from the ground up. But McClellan set
out with great spirit ; every facility was afforded
him ; he was unstinted ; the Administration lavished
means apon him; he acted splendidly; the soldiers
were pleased ; the country was full of hope ; and by
the last of October an army of nearly one hundred
and fifty thousand tolerably thoroughly equipped
soldiers under the immediate command of General
McClellan was ready for the field. By the first day
of March, 1862, it had swelled to nearly seventy-five
ov Google
ABRAHAM LmCOLN. 87
thousand more, iocIudiDg, at that time, the troops in
MHrylnnd and Delaware and up aod down tlie Foto-
miic, and this estimate covered all officers and men,
and all arms of " the service." After the battle of Bull
Ron there were about thirty field-guns belonging to
the Army of the Potomac, while on the first day of
March, 1862, the whole artillery force was over five
hundred guns, over twelve thousand men, and eleven
thousand horses. Long before this date, it began to
be suspected throughout the country that, while Mc-
Clellan had shown much skill »nd coolness in organiz-
ing this splendid army on which every expense had
been lavished, still there was something about him
that rendered him unable to command it successfully
in active war.
Early in the fall n universal cry arose for the
movement of this grand force, and General McClellan
himself said this should not be delayed longer than
the 25th of November. But it was delayed. One
thing or another seemed to be in the way. The
President became impatient, and pressed the matter ;
but still the Army of the Potomac remained quiet.
Beyond a superb and unwieldy establishment nobody
could detect that General McClellan had any plan,
or knew what should be done. And so the winter
passed, and the people came to expect nothing more
than what the telegraph daily sent over the country:
"All quiet on the Potomac."
On the last day of October, General Scott, bur-
dened with disease and age, and feeling his inade-
quacy to a just and successful performance, of the
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S8 LIFE AND TIMES OF
onerous duties of Qeneral-iD-chief of the armies, sent
bia resignation to the Secretary of War. The Pres-
ident, of course, accepted it, and on the following day
put McClellan in his place. On the same day tie
Genernl issued his order annouocing that he had
asaumed command of all the armies of the Union.
While thia sudden advance in position seemed for a
time to widen hia viewa, and 'check his dispoaition
to atrip and neglect the armies in the West for the
Bake of that under his immediate direction, it
appeared to render him still more cautious and
" unready."
In the meantime Generid John Charles Fremont
had been put at the head of the Department of the
West; Nathaniel P. Bunks had taken Patterson's
place; Williams S. Roseorans succeeded McClellan
in West Virginia; John A. Dix was in command at
Baltimore; and General Wool had relieved Ben But-
ler nt Fortress Monroe. And while the superbly
appointed Army of the Potomac was becoming of un-
manageable proportions in the hands of its oiganizer,
instead of being led against the rebels towards the
close of September or October, it is proper to follow
briefly the military events in these less important
but more stirring fields.
In West Virginia the rebels were, in the main,
unsuccessful. After the death of General Robert 8.
Garnett, a graduate of West Point, and a fine officer,
the command of affairs in that region fell into the
hands of Henry A. Wise and John B. Floyd, men
of great pretensions and little military abUity, who.
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90 LIFE AND TIUES OP
preventing the forces of these distinguished militarj
genioses from fightiug among themselves over the
merits of their leaders. Wise was soon called to
Richmond, and matters took a better shape. A great
part of Loring's division having joined him, Lee's
effective force was now over ten thousand men.
Kosecrans, however, who was aware of the change in
the rebel army before him, having only between eight
and nine thousand men himself, and having greatly
exi^erated views as to the size of Lee's combined
force, fell back to the Gauley River, without pursuit.
And here the campaign virtually ended for the winter,
West Vir^nia, to a great extent, remaining undisturbed
throughout the war. There was little sympathy with
the rebel cause in this part of Virginia, and the rebel
army was at the disadvantage of operating in an
enemy's country.
Lee returned to Richmond, and the cry at once
arose against him throughout the South for his utter
failure in West Virginia. Nobody regretted the fail-
ure more than Lee did himself, and, perhaps, nobody
deserved censure less. It was greatly to the interest
of the Rebellion at a later date, and to the credit of
Jefferson Davis, that he knew Lee better and judged
him more correctly than the people were able to do.
On the 25th of July, General Fremont took com-
mand of the Department of the West, at St. Louis,
and, although it was considered that he had been
culpably tardy and indifferent, nnder the pressing
demands of the Department, he stood very high with
the Unionists of Missouri, and was received with great
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92 UFE AND TIMES OF
supplies, for cavalry, for other re-enforcemente, and
traDBportation. All of this atnouated to but little,
however, and as Lyoq saw the rebels gatheriDg with
great st^^nglh od the south, he begau to feel that
fortune was against him, and that the only altema-
tive was retreat or fight under hopeless odds. On
the morning of the 9th of August he wrote quite
despondently for the last time to General Fremont,
saying that his position had become very embarrass-
iog, with the force of the enemy daily increasing
around him, and intimating that even retreat might
be impossible. He now gathered most of his officers
around him, and the questions of retreating and fight-
ing were fully discussed, with a unanimoas decision
in fiiTor of falling back to Rolla. Orders were accord-
ingly given to pack up, but during the day Sweeney
and others, who had not been in the council, threw
their influence against this course, and the result was
tiiat with over five thousand troops, nearly all of his
force at Springfield, on the evening of the same day
Lyon turned his face toward the rebels, and marched
to give them battle in the neighborhood of Wilson's
Creek. Lyon was fully aware that Price had been
joined by Ben McCulloch, and had every reason to
heheve that the force against him was nt least two
or three times the size of his own little army. Still,
there was a kind of fate, he fancied, driving him to
this conflict, in which he would himself fall.
At five o'clock on the following morning, the
10th, the battle began by Sigel striking the rebels
in surprise on their right, and routing them. But
ovGoO'^lc
'*jimA-''
ABRAHAM UHOOLN. 03
hia men were not tnuned to the proper u^e of suoh
deceptive good fortuoe, and while turning their
attention to the booty the rebels fell upon them and
whipped Ihem, and utterly broke up the oommimd.
Sigel himself, without knowing the fate of Lyon,
sought safety and repose at Springfield. In the
meantime Lyon had engaged the rebels with his
main force under his own direction, and before
twelve o'clock he had possession of the field, and
the battle was over. But poor, brave, patriotio
Lyon's presentiment as to his own fate had been
fulfilled. He hud been everywhere exposed in the
heat of the conflict, and was fighting on foot to
avoid the rebel sharp-shooters. But bringing up his
Bmall reserve for the last onset, although then se-
verely wounded, when he heard the cry along the
line, " Who will lead ns ?" he mounted a horse, and
waving his hand, shouted : " I will lead you ; on-
ward, brave boys of Iowa !" His word and presence
were enough, bnt this was his last act. A hall
pierced his heart, and in a moment " life's fitful
dream was o'er."
His death was a national misfortune. His place
could not be filled. There were no more Lyons.
Had he lived to 'the end of the Rebellion his name
would have stood among those of the brave who had
served their country best. Among the rebels Stone-
wall Jackson, while being in some respects, perhaps,
a saperior man, would instinctively be placed by
the side of Lyon, who, however, excelled Jackson as
a truned soldier.
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H UFE ASD TIMES OF
Over twelve hundred of the Unioo troope were
put down as killed, wounded, and missing in this
engagement, and of this Dumber two hundred and
twenty-three were killed.
Major S. D. 8tui^is succeeded Lyon in the com-
mand, and soon afterwards ordered a retreat, al-
though it was perhapB the opinion of Sweeney and
Gordon Granger that a vigorous pursuit of the enemy
should have been preferred, as they had drawn off,
and were too bndly handled to make any attempt
against the retreating army. Subsequent light
thrown on this battle did not at all show that
Sweeney and Granger were not right in their Jadg-
ment of the advantages of the fight and the ability
of the small, effective, remaining Union force to pro-
dace the utter rout of the rebels and change the cast
of events-
General Fremont claimed^ in his defense, that he
WAS not responsible either for this unsuccessful move*
ment into the south-western part of the State, or the
baitle of Wilson's Creek ; that all of this misfortune
made no part of his admin istratioD of the affairs of
the Western Department. Without opportunity to
understand the true state of the case on his arriwl
in St. Louis, General Fremont was greatly perplexed
by the demands made upon him from Cairo and
Springfield, and he fell into the view that the former
^oint deserved his attention at the time. The
grounds for his position were, perhaps, maintainable,
yet there may justly remain some doubt as to his
want of ability to have re-enforced Lyon before it
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ABRAHAJIf LINCOLN. 06
was too late, however nojast it might be to accuse
him of a lack of dispositioD to do so.
If General Fremont had been guilty of inactivity
and uncertainty before, such a charge >would have
been groundless for some time subsequent to the
battle of Wilson's Creek. General Fi-entiss at Cairo
had been reinforced, and the importunce of that
point had somewhat dimioished. Fremont now tele-
graphed to Washington for men of all arms and for
money, and notified the governors of the adjoining
States to send on such troops as they had at com-
mand ; and his preparations began on a scale which
was proverbially grand and extravagant, tomewh^t in
keeping with his own character.
In the meantime, although the rebel generals had
quarreled, and McCulIoch had gone south with his
command, Price, the ablest officer they had west of
the Mississippi, moved toward the Missouri River,
bis force augmenting as he advanced. Whiit Lyon
bnd gained and would have held, if he had been re-
eaforced as it was in the power of the Government
to do, was now lost. The rebels overran a great
part of the State, and the loyal citizens were driven
from their homes, or killed and stripped of all they
Fremont now thought himself justified in declar-
ing the whole State under martial law, and accord-
ii^ly on the 30th of August he issued a very
stringent general order to that effect, and in it
stepped far beyond the spirit of the Confiscation Act
of Congress and the policy of the Administration,
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96 LIFE AND TIMES OF
it was thou^t. It coDtiuned the following ao-
Douncemeot : —
" Id this condition the pnblic safety and success of oar
arms require unity of purpose, without let or hiadraooe to
the prompt admiaietratiou of aBkirs. Id order, therefore,
to suppress disorders, maintaiQ the public peace, and give
security to the persoDS and property of loyal citizens, I
do hereby exteDd and declare established martial law
throughout the State of Missouri. The lines of the army
occupation in this State are for the present declared to
extend from Leavenworth, by way of posts of Jefferson
City, BoUa, aod IroDton, to Cape Girardeau on the Mis-
sissippi River. All persoDS who shall be t»ken with arms
in their hands within these lines shall be tried by court-
martial, and if found guilty will be shot. Real aod per-
sonal property of those who shall take up arms against the
United States, or who shall be directly proven to have
taken an active part with their enemies in tbe field, is
declared confiscated to public use, and their slaves, if any
they have, are hereby declared' free men.
"Ail persons who shall be proven to have destroyed,
after the publication of this order, railroad tracks, bridges,
or telegraph lines, shall suffer the extreme penalty of the
law. All persons engaged in treasonable correspondence,
in ^ving or procuring aid to the enemy, in fermenting
turmoil, and disturbing public tranquillity, by creating or
circulating false reports or incendiary documents, are
warned that they are exposing themselves.
"All persons who have been led away from allegiance
are required to return to their homes forthwith. Any
such absence, without sufficient cause, will be held to be
presumptive evidence against them,"
A few days afterwards Fremont issued patents or
deeds of mnoumission to two of Thomas L. Snead's
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ABBAHAM LINCOLN. 97
slaves. Snead had been one of Jackson's commis-
sioners to negotiate with Jefferson Davis for placing
Missonri under the rebel authorities. This procia-
mation created much excitement and ill-feeling in
the border States, and the President considering it
likely to be detrimental to his policy, all the policy
he bad at that time on the slavery question, sent this
brief letter to General Fremont : — '
" Waskihoton, D. C, September 11, 1861.
"Major-General John C. Fhbmont:—
"8m, — Yours of the 8th, id answer ta mine of the
2d lost,, is just received. Assured that you, upon the
ground, could better judge of the necessities of your posi-
tion than I could at this distance, ou seeing your procla-
matioD of August 30th,. I perceived no general objection
to it; the particular clause, however, in relation to the
confiscatioD of property and the Itheratioa of slaves ap-
peared to me to be objectionable in its non-conformity to
the Act of Congress, passed the 6th of last August, upon
the same subjects, and hence I wrote you, expressing my
wish that that clause should be modified accordingly.
"Your answer just received expresses the preference on
your part that I should make an open order for the modi-
fication, which I very cheerfully do. It is, therefore,
ordered that the said clause of the said proclamation be so
modified, held, and oonstmed as to conform with and not
to transcend the provisioDS oo the same subject contained
in the act of Congress entitled, 'An act to confiscate prop-
erty used for insurrectionary purposes,* approved August
6, 1861, and that said Act be published at length with this
order. Tour obedient servant, A, Linooln."
This was the beginning of the end of what had
the general appearance of becoming a brilliant mili-
ovGoO'^lc
98 UFE AND TIMES OF
tary career for General Fremont. In all this time
Price had been gatlieting a large force and having
things his own way, and on the 11th, while General
Fremont was creating his emancipation tunnoil, the
advance of his army reached Lexington and began
the attack on the small force of twenty-seven hun-
dred and eighty men just then in position on College
Hill, under the commiind of Colonel James B. Mul-
ligHn, a brave but inexperienced officer, which ended
in his capturing the whole force on the afternoon of
the 20th. Fremont was gieatly chagrined two days
subsequently to hear of Miilligiin's surrender, when
he not only had good rensoii to believe he had been
re-enforced by at least four . thousand men by his
own orders, but be had also made arrnngemcnts, as
he thoi^ht, to intercept Price on his retreat. A few
days after this event Fremont himself set forward to
meet or pursue Price. But the rebel general showed
no disposition to fight, preferring to retmce his steps
toward Arkansas. Fremont halted at Tipton to col-
lect and consolidate his army consisting of nearly
thirty thousand men, about five thousahd being cav-
alry. He had eighty-six guns. But with all his
effort and the exaggerated statements as to his mag-
nificent and expensive preparations, he was even now
short of the proper means of transportation for a
lai^e portion of his army. Here on the 13th of Oc-
tober, he was overtaken by the Secretary of War,
who had come out from Washington in company
with Adjutant- General Thomas and his staff, for a con-
ference with him. Mr. Cameron then carried the
ovGoO'^lc
AfiBAHAU UNCOLH. 90
aathority to remoTe Fremont from Uie command.
Bat this he determined not to exercise at that time,
notwithstandiDg the whole company returned to
Washington greatly displeased with General Fremont's
affairs, and fuUy under the eonviction that he would
be able to make little headway against the enemy.
Nothing that occnrred afterwards justified their pre-
dictions or their unfavorable opinions.
On the 27th Fremont's advance reached Spring-
field, and by the let of November the greater piirt of
his army had arrived at that point, Pope's division
having, in the two preceding days, marched seventy
miles. On the 1st the order from Washington ciime
relieving Fremont from the command and placing it
temporarily under David Hunter, one of the division
generals. But Fremont, from the best information he
could gain, believing that Price was only ten miles
distant on Wilson's Creek, after consulting with his
officers, concluded to give him battle the next day,
and issued his orders to that effect. That night,
however. Hunter ardved and took command of the
whole anny. The next day he made a reconnoisance
resulting in the discovery that the rebels were not
on Wilson's Creek, but many miles to the South, be-
yond striking distance then. Hunter now ordered a
retreat and the whole army fell back to Rolla and
the ^ine of the Kansas railroad, thus a second time
abandoning the south-western part of the State un-
necessarily to the horrors of a guerrilla wnrfare.
Lyon had gone down there to stay, and had five
ihonsand men been sent to his aid in time he would
ov Google
too UFE AND TIHES OF
have stai4 there ; and had ten thonsand more been
put under his command he would, before the Ist of
January, 1862, have cleared the country of rebel rule
west of the Mississippi, nnd to the Arkansas River
at least, and prevented the Cherokee and Creek In-
dians from falling a prey to the machinations of the
rebel leaders. And now, although a considerable por-
tion of Fremont's army was poorly equipped, nod his
means of transportation inadequate, these difficulties
*vere not insurmountable, and even at the worst his
facilities could never be worse than those of the
rebels. ' Fremont had well digested all of these
things, and he had passed through too much to think
for a moment that a way would not open to the Path-
finder. He had gone down there, tis Lyon hnd, to
free the Country of the rebeb and make his way to
the Mississippi, and who can say to-day t^at he would
not have accomplished what he started out to do?
To a great extent his army believed in him, and was
full of enthusiasm, and in it was a vast amount of
material peculiarly fit to be led by such a man as
Fremont. An instance of this fact may be seen in
the history of Major Zagonyi's capture of Springfield
on the 26th of October. Fremont had formed a Body-
Quard of three hundred men, led by this daring
officer. They were especially organized with reference
to a career of splendid deeds, and although they were
foiled at the very outset, perhaps their action at
Springfield was the most magnificent cavalry feat of
the long conflict. The story of the Body-Guard must
always stand as a brilliant passsge in the history of
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ABRAHAM LINCOLN. IQl
AmerioaD wars. And yet, for some strange reason,
although these brave men of Qie Fremont Body<
Guard had enlisted for three years, General McClellan
caased them to be mustered out soon after Fremont
himself had been relieved of the commaod.
Whoever was responsible for the removal of Fre-
mont at this important juncture, the evil of the step
still remained the same. If his appointment had
been of doubtful propriety, as some haVe held, his
removal was a calamity. The management of affairs
in Missouri had, from the first, been deplorably bad.
The multitude and vnrlety of the Presiilent's coun-
selors and the temporizing policy be deemed it best
to pursue had furnished the explanation to this state
of affairs, and there bnd yet been little or no change
for the better. Fremont committed some errors;
but who did not do as much? His removal at the
tame was, to all appearances,' a misfortune to the
caase ; and it was, without doubt, a shameful insult
to the man who was making his first step in what
had every prospect of being a brilliant military career.
General Hunter, in giving up all that had been
gained at bo great a cost, it has been cltiimed, only
carried out the desire of the President; but were this
true, the responsibility of committing another great
error was merely shifted to wider shoulders. The
day of blunders in the War Department, if not in the .
Administration also, was approaching an end. Gen-
eral Hunter was not deemed a suitable department
commander, and only a week after he took the place
of Fremont, General H. W. Halleck superseded him.
ov Google
LIFE AND TIMES OF
CHAPTER V.
Si— WAR OF THE REBELLION— BATTLE OF ("EA RIDGE—
BELMONT AND COLUMBUS — GRANT AND HALLECK—
FORT HENRY — FORT DONELSON — MILL SPRINGS —
BALL'S BLUFF— THE NAVY— A GENERAL VIEW— ENG-
LAND—GENERAL BURNSIDE IN NORTH CAROLINA.
^OR the nest month General John Pope got the
credit of being the most active officer in Mis-
uri. In this time he captured or broke up several
nail rebel forces, and finally drove Price back to
pringfield and the Arkansas border. The species
' warfare now carried on in Missouri, as throughout
e whole border line, indeed, only bore upon the
lal result so far as the question of exhaustion was
incerned. On the 23d of January, 1862, Qeneral
imuel R. Curtis, with twelve or thirteen thousand
en, marched from Rolla toward Springfield on the
ird of these expeditions to Arkansas. Price, who
HS really one of the most successful of the rebel
ftders, retreated before him to Fayetteville, in Ar-
insas, where he was again joined by Ben McCuIIocfa,
id they agreed so far as to retreat together to Bos-
II Mountain. The rebel General, Earl Van Dora,
iw arrived, and took the chief command, and on
e 6th of March advanced to attack the Federals,
'ith some diEBcutty Curtis drew in his much-scattered
ovGoO'^lc
ABSAHAU LmOOLN. KK
forces, and focmed bis line of defense on the blu
of Pea Ridge, overlooking the valley of Sugar Cre(
Od the 7th the battle began, and when night clos
the work of the day, it was not easy to any whe
the advantage lay. Ben McCuUoch and Mclnto
had been killed, and there had been some success
on both sides. The next morning the conflict n
renewed, but in a few hours the rebels had giv
way and retreated through the defiles of the Knol
leaving the victors on the field. The Union loss
this battle was over thirteen hundred in kill*
wounded, and missing. The rebels had the advantfl
in numbers, and suffered a greater loss. After a til
Curtis resumed his march into Arkansas, but ma
of his men having been sent to the Tennessee Riv
he made little headway. Still he found little op]
sition, as the regularly organized rebel forces h
also been mainly sent to the east side of the Mise
sippi, a field of more importance.
Curtis, toward the last of September, becai
commander of the Department of Missoari, with 1
head-quarters at St. Louis; but its affairs, althou
often serious, and always bad enough, from this i
by reason of the great events in other quarters, 1
came of little note in the great conflict. The vi
Department of the West had been divided into seve
separate commands. New Mexico was placed unc
General E. R. S. Canby; Kansas, under Gene
David Hunter; Missouri was a department; a
D. C. Buell was put at the head of the Departmt
of the Ohio.
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104 UFE AND TIMES OF •
la tlie meaQtime matters had progressed some-
what in other parts of the country. Oa the 4th of
Septemher Bishop Leoaidas Polk, with a considerable
rebel force, took possessioa of Hickman and Columbus,
in Kentucky, on the Mississippi Riyer, and speedily
began fortiScatioDs at the latter, with a view of com-
manding the river. U. 8. Grant, who had just come
into command at Cairo, hearing of the movements of
Polk, sailed on the next night with a small force, and
on the morning of the 6th landed at Paducah, Lloyd
Tilghman and a few rebels under hia comman<I, who
had also arrived for the purpose of claiming that
place, withdrawing without resistance.
On the 6th of November, under instructions from
St. Louis, General Grant left Cairo with about thfee
thousand men aboard some transport boats, con-
veyed by two gun-boats, for the purpose of occupying
the attention of the rebels about Columbus, but with
no design of bringing od an engagement. Opposite
Columbus, in easy range of the guns of General Polk,
was Belmont, a river station. A rebel camp was
located at this point, having a battery and several
hundred men. Grant concluded to laud several miles
above, and, by a detour through the woods, fall upon
and take this camp before assistance could reach it
from Columbus. But Bishop Polk was not the kind
of man to be caught asleep while an enemy was
known to be lurking around. Early on the morning
of the 7th Grant landed, and led his small force of
less than three thousand men to attack Belmont.
But Polk had discovered the movement, and seat
ovGoO'^lc
ABRAHAM LINOOLN. 106
over Beveral regiments under Gideon J. Pillow, who
awaited his approach with a force outDumberiDg his
own. A stubborn fight ensued, in which the rebels
were defeated and put to flight, leaving their gups
and camp material behind. Strangely enough, the
victors now turned into speech-making, congratulating
themselves, and gathering up such spoils as appeared
worthy of attention. But all this time Polk, having
discovered that no attack was designed on his side
of the river, was sending re-enforcements to Pillow,
whose routed troops were reformed, and increased to
double the number Grant brought with him. With
difficulty the Union troops were now thrown into line,
and began to retrace their way to the transports.
But Pillow was found ready to dispute the passage,
and at this moment some of General Grant's pestif-
erous orators began to feet that the whole thing was
likely to end in an ignominious surrender to the
rebels. Grant had two remarkable qualities, then
not very well known — one for getting into difficulties,
and one for getting out of difficulties. He now said
they hud fought their way in, they would fight their
way out. And this they did; and gained the trans-
ports and gunboats eftar a severe stru^le, the
General himself being among the last to quit the
land. In this worthless affair nearly five hundred
were lost on the Union side, and a greater number
on the other.
Soon after Grant took possession of Padncah,
General C. F. Smith, by the suggestion or order of
General Fremont, stationed a small force at the
oyGoot^lc
106 UFE ANB TIUES OF
mouth of the Camberlaad River, twelve miles ahove.
The mouths of both the Teunessee and Cumberland
were now in ih«> hands of the Federals, as well as
the whole of the Ohio ; and military men began to
get some glimpses of the course events were Hkely
to take. Political considenitions were dropped, to a
' great extent, and armies, battles, and results were
mainly brought into the calculations. The location of
the Federals at the outlets of the two Southern rivers
greatly annoyed the rebels. This had been a very
fortunate movement on the war board, and to Grant
the credit of making it was due, and at Icjtst at so
early a mouient, and when it could be done without
the expense of pushing anybody else out. This
movement aided somewhat in defining the general
situation in a military sense. On the Cumberland
River the rebels had established themselves in an
exceedingly strong position, called Fort Donetson, on
the left or east bank of the river; and opposite the
southern border of Kentucky, on the right or west
bank of the Tennessee, they had bmlt Fort Henry.
The strip of country between these two points was
not over twelve miles wide, and two rough roads
connected them.
Soon after Polk planted himself at Colnmbos,
Felix K. Zollicoffer, with a small force, entered Ken-
tucky; and about the middle of September, Simon
Bolivar Buckner, a West Point graduate, recently
commander of Governor Magoffin's State guards, hav-
ing become a general in the rebel cause, engaged in
collecting an army at Bowling Green. It now began
ovGoO'^lc
ABKAHAll USCOhS. 107
to become erident thai the key to the rebel front
from the Miesissippi to the Cumberland Mountains
was in the two positions on the Gamberhuid and
Tennessee Rivers. Even Columbus, which they ex-
pected to make the Gibraltar of the West, and by
which' they believed they would eflfectually place
under their ccmtrol the Mississippi, it was seeD,
would have to be abandoned with the loss of Forta
Henry and Donelson. The rebel leaders were gath-
eiing tiieir main strength, political and military, in
Virginia, with the purpose of making their greatest
stru^le there for the government they had set out
to estiiblish. The decision of the question could
only be materially influenced by the success of the
national army in breaking up the connection of Vir-
ginia with the great field of snpplies in the South-
west and on the Gulf. The capture of Forts Henry
and Honelson would open the way to Middle Ten-
nessee, and at once, perhaps, out the first line of
supplies for Richmond.
It may be a question of doubt as to the originator
or discoverer of this true line of operations for the
Government. When the war had once really begun,
and the country settled down to the conviction that
the stru^le would not end in a day or a single
battle, it was no difficult matter to see that the re*
fl^on west of the Mississippi might, to a great extent,
be left ont of the calculations. Nor was the whole
matter difficult of solution when the rebel line of
policy had become certain. The map of the country
and the condition of their affairs soon made t^e case
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108 LIFE AND TIMES OF
evideat. On their part it was mainly to be a de-
fensive war. There was no such thing to -involve
the situation as the rebels overrunQing the West and
Northwest, the great grain-fields of the Republic.
General Halleck may have, as has been claimed,
drawn his pen over the route the Union army should
take by way of Fort Donelson, Nashville, Chatta-
nooga, Atlanta, etc., to break the back of the !Re-
bellioQ. W. T. Sherman, who had become a general,
may also have at an early day taken the true general
Tiew of the case ; others began to have notions on
the subject; and all these matters soon began to
take form at Washington.
But if any one man should have more credit than
another, or any one should be looked upon in the
light of being credited for doing well and thinking
wisely, on this subject, thiit man was, perhaps. Gen-
eral Grant. Through his persistency the movements
against Forts Henry and Donelson were undertaken
when they were. He had kept his own counsels.
His views were his own. When, after a long time,
he got permission to ask Halleok to be allowed to
take Fort Henry, he was sent off as a military up-
start. The true situation of affairs had not yet
dawned upon Halleck. But Grant now began to
display his dominant trait, pertinacity. He still con-
tinued to notify Halleck of his desire to take the
fort, and press his views of the resnlt of success.
At last, after Commodore A. H. Foote had joined
Grant in an appeal, on the 30th of Janoary, General
Halleck sent him word to get ready, and on the seo-
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J, Google
110 LIFE AND TIMES OF
Grant had only asked permissioii to capture Fort
Henry. Nothing hnd been said directly between him
and General Halleck as to Donelson. Bat in his dis-
patches to Halleck, he simply said : " I shall take and
destroy Fort DonelsoD on the 8th, and retura to Fort
Henry." And so Halleck notified General Buell.
Grant had something to leam yet. Although he was
always characterized for what was termed the mod-
esty of his reports, about this dispatch to General
Halleck there was an evident air of inexperience as
to the men with whom he had to contend, and the
' probable difficulties to be overcome otherwise, if it
(lid not also s;iy that what he undertook he did, and
that was the end of it.
But two things changed the prospects at once,
and when the Sth came. General Grant could only
telegraph that the high stage of the water hiid ren-
dered it about all he could do to hold what he had
taken. Besides this unexpected cause of delay,
Tilgbman's good gunning had disabled some of Com-
modore Foote's gun-boats, and that officer had returned
to Cairo for repiiirs. So that it was the 12th before
Grant could begin his movement across the country,
and by that time the rebel force at Fort Donelson
had been raised to aboat twenty thousand men, ten
ot twelve thousnnd more than it was on the 8th, the
(lay on which his promise would have been made
good, no doubt, had he been able to move against it.
As it was, he went into position before the rebels on
the night of the 13th with only fifteen thousand
men stretched out in a line nearly three miles long.
ovGoO'^lc
ABRAHAM UNCOLK. Ill
Of course, his force was greatly overestimated by the
rebels, as is usual ia Bncb cases. This was especially
fortunate for him. The rebels had, to some extent,
realized that the capture of these forts would weaken
or break up their advanced line fi-om the Cumberland
Mountains and Bowling Qreen to Columbus, and con-
sequently extraordinary exertions were put forth for
a desperate stake.
The notorious John B. Floyd had, much against
his \cill, come in on the 12tb, and was the senior
officer at the fort. Floyd always seemed to go about
in a kind of presentiment that he was wanted for
■his piist deeds, and thai something was going to b&>
fall htm. He thought the people of the United
States had an especial halter for him, and with no
little feeling of dissatisfaction did he trust himself to
the doubtful limits of.' Fort Donelson. But if Floyd
bad a naturally strong desire to avoid falling into
the hands of the Federalists, he was not by any
means a eoward, tiioogh his military career had a
rather ignominious ending soon after this historic
event, notwithstanding the great service he had ren-
dered in organizing the conspiracy, and putting the
Bebellion on foot. Gideon J. Pillow also appeared
to be uneasy about his position at Fort Donelson.
But the rebels had many good officers, among
whom was S. B. Buckner, although it must be seen
their affairs were not very wisely handled, perhaps.
At all events they might have greatly annoyed Gen-
eral Grant in his march from the Tennessee, and
their position was one of great natural strength.
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112 LIFE AND TIMES OF
The fort stood a hundred feet above tbe river, wliich
it commanded for a long distance, and iill of Commo-
dore Foote's fleet of iron>clad gun-boats was little
more than a fleet of tube or babbles before it. The
strong and easily constmcted abattis on the land
side, with the high water in the snrronnding creeks,
and the broten condition of the conntry, rendered it
almost impregnable, and certainly to aa army at the
last not overwhelmingly nnmerons.
On the ISth Grant completed his investment of
the rebels ; and on that night Commodore Foote ar-
rived with his flotilla and bringing a large land re-
enforcement for the army, which by the next day or
the day after amounted to nearly twenty-seven thou-
sand men. From the moment Hallepk received the
intelligence of Grant's success at Fort Henry, and
his design on the other and more formidable position,
he made herculean efforts to forward troops and sup-
plies. His achievement in this respect was admirable
and fortunate. And even after all he had done.
Grant came near allowing the rebels to run away,
besides being badly whipped himself.
A great part of Thursday, the ISth, there was
hard fighting, but the Federal troops pressed forward
and took the positions assigned them for the final
struggle on the succeeding days. On Friday morn-
ing the rebel generals in council decided to cut their
way out that day before it would be too late, but for
some cause this project was not attempted then, and
the day was passed in comparative quiet by the
Union army. In the afternoon, however, Gommo*
ovGoo'^lc
ABSAHAH UNCOLN. 113
dore Foote tried hie power oa the fort, and before
night was knocked entirely out of the fight, his boats
all disabled, and himself and many of his officers
and men wounded, and quite a number killed. This
night -again. the rebel commanders considered the
question of cutting their way through the Union
army, and decided as they had done before. Ac-
cordingly at early dawn on Saturday, the 16th,
preparations for the sortie began. There had been
a diTisioD in the council as to the course to be
taken with the war material, baggage, and supplies,
if the sortie proved succesefut, and ao some of the
troops appeared in the .conflict of the day with
knapsacks and rations for a journey, and others in
whole regiments and brigades carried with them to
the field only arms for the fight. The attack was
made with skill and by noon the division of General
John A. McClemand forming the Union right was
pressed entirely back from t^e road on the river, and
the route actually opened to the country beyond;
Beveral of the Union regiments' had been seriously
handled, and had retired from the contest; whole
brigades were pushed back and for the time thrown
out of the fight; the rebels had captured several.
guns and several hundred prisoners ; in the midst of
the coofasion, witii defeat staring them in the face,
McClernand, Lewis Wallace, and others had applied
to Grant for orders, but he was silent; General
John McArthur, who had arrived the evening before,
had not even been assigned a position, and had found
one for himself, had fought, and been whipped, and
ov Google
114 LIFE AND 1TMB8 OF
withdrawn from the field to rest and reform ; Wal-
lace at last assamed the reBponsibility, and ordered
forward the reserves, checking the rehel adyaDce,
whipping and disheartening Pillow's command, and
forcing a general retirement upon the intrenched
positions; yet Buchner was in the place assigned
him, and ready to make a strong movemeat forward
which would in all probability have carried Uie day
but at this important crisis the rebels stood still
their right had suddenly appeared to be in danger
indecision had seized some-of the leaders; there was
another conflict of authority ; and Grant for the first
time that day had arrive*^ on the field. In the night
Commodore Foote had urged him to meet him on
his boat, to apprise him of the shattered condition
of his fleet, and inform him of his determination to
return to Cairo. Here he had spent all the morning,,
and the firing which was on the extreme right sev-
eral miles through the , woods up the river, he sup-
posed to be the usual skirmishing, and for some un-
accountable reason he had not been notified of th«
true state of the case. He was but a moment in
getting the situation. He announced to the broken
troops that the three days' rations found on the dead
bodies of some of the rebels truly indicated that they
had been attempting to cut a way out; and seeing
that a straw would turn the day for or against htm,
and that depended upon immediate action, he threw
forward the great mass of hts effective force, the
spirit of the scene was changed ; force after force
was hurled upon the confused and wavering rebels,.
ov Google
ABRAHAM UNCOLN.
and as night set in they were completely en
back into their works, with parts of them occ
by the Federals, ready to finish the work on So
morning.
That night there were strange scenes in
DoneUon. Pillow was disposed to think there
still ground for believing they could cut their
ont; at all events he would not surrender. Floy
clared he would rather die, but agreed with ]
ner that the contest was at an end. So it was &,
that Floyd, Pillow, Forrest, and as many othe
could, should run away, and Buckner should
render in the morning. Forrest went out thi
the mad and water on the Union right with mo
the cavalry before dayl^ht, and Pillow and his
got over the river, as did also Floyd and a con
able portion of hts brigade. Many had slipped
during the day and night, and when Buckner's
blew the surrender at dawn on Sunday his arm^
been decreased by five thousand of these felloe
all ranks.
On Sunday, February 16th, Buckner wro
General Grant proposing the appointment of coi
sioners to settle Uie terms of surrender. T<
proposition Grant replied immediately in his
brated words : " No terms other than an nn<
tiooal and immediate surrender can be accepte
propose to move immediately upon your works.
Nearly fifteen thousand men were surrenc
with sixty-five guns and about eighteen thoi
small arms, and a large quantity of stores. I
ov Google
116 LIFE AND TIMES OF
was not a cheaply bought victory. Over three
thousand were "killed, wounded, and missing " on
the Union side ; and shout two thousand of the
rebels. But nothing had yet happened to the Gov-
ernment side which gave it such a set forward ; the
whole loyal country was in ecstasies. This was a
severe blow to the rebels which they were not slow
to realize, and its fruits were soon widely visible.
Bowling Green and Columbus were evacuated, and
before the week the Union line had been extended
to Nashville. For all of this Halleck said that he
must have the command in the West, and Grant, the
brave old C. F. Smith, John A. McClernand, and
Lewis Wallace must be major-generals. Asking, and
even pressing, for the laurels was not inconsistent
with General Halleck's modesty or patriotism.
Only three days after this event, the battle of
Hill Springs, near Somerset, Kentucky, was fought.
In this the Federals under George H. Thomas, were
again victorious, whipping and driving the whole
rebel force several miles to their camp on the Cum-
berland River. During the night. General George
B. Crittenden, the rebel commander, succeeded in
conveying his whole army across the river, and when
morning dawned General Thomas, to his great cha-
grin, discovered that the foe had escnped, leaving,
however, a camp full of valuable material and live-
stock which the Rebellion could hardly afford to
spare. In this battle fell Felix K, ZoUicoffer, who
in October had been whipped by General Albin
Schoepff ina stubborn eng^ement at B«okcastle Hills,
ov Google
ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 117
or Camp Wildcat, in Kentucky. This important
stroke, coming so quickly on the heels of Fort Donel-
SOD, greatly excited the enthusiasm of the loyal
North, and advanced the reputation of her soldiers
and general officers. While, in the ordinary sense,
there was cause for rejoicing, there was also abun-
dant cause of sorrow to the friends of the country.
Many a brave man had fallen, and it required a grand
and heroic philosophy to be able to say that to die
for the country was no sacrifice, that to live amidst
its ruia would be eternal ignominy.
On the 22d of October there had been a great
tragedy, hardly a battle, at Bait's Bluff above Har-
rison's Island in the Potomac, where three hundred
men were pushed over the bluff and shot or drowned
in the river, and seven hundred captured in what
was designed as a simple reconnoisance about Lees-
burg. In this wretchedly managed afiair fell Colonel
Edward L. Baker, an officer of great promise.
Many other engagements of little direct moment
in setUing the great conflict bad occurred here and
there along the extensive war border, by the first of
March, 1862, but these can not be noticed here.
On the day of Mr. Lincoln's inauguration the
American navy proper waa composed of forty-two
vessels, steamers and sailing-ships, carrying five
hundred and fifty-five guns and seven thousand, six
hundred men. These were distributed far and wide
over the world, so that when the moment came for
the Government to strike for its life, it was deprived
of the assistance of even this little navy. With the
ovGoO'^lc
IIB ' UFE AND TIMES OF
army on the frontier and the forts mainly in the
bands of disloyal officers, it was an easy matter for
the conspirators to seize the arms and property of
the Qovernment. It had nerer been a part of the
policy of the Democrats, long mainly dominant in
the administration of the Government, to strengthen
the army and the navy ; and during the last Admin-
istration, and to some extent, the preoeding one, both
of these peculiarly national features of the Kepublic
were either syatematically neglected, or purposely
weakened, and as far as possible officered by men
who would be willing to desert or betray the Nation
under a political creed which bad no place with the
" privates " in the army or the common sailors of the
navy. And especially was it true that the " s«lor
boys" knew no politics which divided their allegiance
to "Uncle Sam." On the ocean, in the American
Navy, there were no State lines, no State sover-
eignty. And in the vast marine force now rapidly
organized, there were no State quotas, no State be-
tween the people and the Qovemment, no- State
companies, crews, ships, or squadrons. This was yet
emphatically the American Niivy, and as such, during
the War of the Rebellion, it acquired a fame which
startled Europe, excited the rage of England, and
left little chance for doubt as to the olaim of "mis-
tress of the sea," in a foreign contest.
Gideon Welles, a native of Connecticut, whom
Mr. Lincoln put at the head of the Naval Depart-
ment, was admirably suited to the position. No
man connected with the Government during this
ovGoO'^lc
ABBAHAU LINCOLH. 119
great trial ordeal through which it passed performed
the task intrusted to him with more fidelity and
ability than did Gideon Welles. Uader James K.
Polk he had been at the head of a branch of the
Slime department, and until the organization of the
Repablican party and the end of the old issues he
had been a Democrat. He was well advanoed in
years, and he bore a large share of Ute ridicule
which at first attached to a Cabinet believed to be
composed of men too old for the emergency. From
the very natui'e of his Department, notwithstanding
so mach was expected of the navy, it was void of
that noise and show which belonged to the army,
and its affairs were conducted throughout with an
unostentatious quietness no less admirable than the
wonderful dispatch and determination by which a
mngnificent river and sea-going marine of nearly five
hundred vessels sprang into effective service by the
4th of March, 1862.
Mr. Welles was foitunate, as was the country, in
having by his side as AssistanUSecretary of the Navy
and Chief Clerk, Gustavus Vasa Fox and William
Ffixon. Captain Fox had given General Scott and
the Administration a lesson in energy and adventure
in a perfectly feasible plan for resnpplyii^ Fort
Sumter, which failed through no fault of his, and
which might have been executed on any one of fifty
preceding dark nights.
The general work of the navy was divided into
two branches, service on the seas, and service on the
rivers : and hence these two features were made the
oyCooglc
120 LIFE AND TIMES OF
fonndatioD of its orgaaizatioD. And what was it
expected to do ? It was to blockade effectually t^e
entire Sonthera coast from the Chesapeake Bay to
the Rio Grande ; to protect the searboard ; to look
after rebel pirates on the ocean, in the harbors,
and on the hundreds of broad-mouthed inlets of the
coast J to patrol the rivers, as the Potomac, Ohio,
and Mississippi ; to transport troops on these rivers,
and co-operate in battles; to convey vast land ex-
peditions to points on the coHst, and aid in capturing
and guarding them ; to assail the foe in whatever
condition found, on its own account; to be ready for
any foreign issue which might arise; and to fulfill
the enormous demands for army supplies on the coast
and the inland waters. To prepare and ot^^nize this
vast force was a task which the country little realized,
where the pomp and tumult of the army absorbed
the common interest.
In the construction of war-vessels the well-known
American system, not the English, was pursued ; and
the spirit of the people and the extraordinary de-
mands of the times were made the basis of new
inventions, new models, and new principles in naval
structure and armament. Three general principles
long recognized in America were now made promi-
nent in the great work of ship-building entered upon
with all the energy and resource of the- Goverainent,
These were : the highest possible conditions of speeii,
the greatest concentration of projectile force, and the
least possible exposure of surface in armored vessels.
Were it my disposition to follow out minutely the
ovGoO'^lc
r^lREi^H"' ' '■
ABELkHAM LINCOLN. 131
bistoiy of the QoTenuneiit in the purchase of mer*
ebant ships and steamers of every grade and class;
of their remodeling and adaptation ; of the construc-
tion of a vast blockading fleet ; of experiments
and new models ; of the iron-clad gun-boats and the
wonderful turreted monitors, the overgrowth of these
volumes would prevent, it having already rendered a
mere bird's-eye view of the battle-field an absolute
necessity. At the actual inauguration of the war the
navy was as destitute of heavy guns as it was of
war-ehips. At Gosport alone there had been lost by
treason, imbecility, or cowardice, enough to equip a '
vast navy. At the beginning of 1864 there were
over three thousand great guns, some of them carry-
ing enormous projectiles a distance of three or four
miles ; and at the end of this year the number of
steamers and sailing-vessels actually in commission in
charge of the Department of the Navy was nearly
five hundred.
At the outset there were technically two ways
open to the Adnunistration in the treatment of the
coast question. It chose to take that one which did
not meet the approval of the Secretary of the Navy ;
that is, to declare a blockade instead of that all the
rebel ports were closed. If the blockade were de-
cided upon, it was ai^ued, the national authorities
did foi' themselves what they censured England and
France for doing : tJiey virtually acknowledged the
rebels to be a belligerent power, to be treated an
such, and not as domestic traitors. According to the
custom of nations, upon the closing of the ports a
ov Google
122 LIFE AND TIMES OF
different oonstraction would be placed; one in har-
mony with the intentions of the Government in
treating the rebels as domestic foes, with all rights
forfeited, and from which there was another departure
in the exchange of prisoners. The exchange of pris-
oners did, of course, become a necessity as a matter
of humanity, but this act by no means declared the
independent belligerent power of the Rebellion. Nor
did the blockade do anything of the kind. That
English writers, friendly to the Rebellion, would twist
and overestimate this matter, was to be expected.
But the distinctioQ between a blockade and a closing
of the ports was without practical difference. And
it was a mistake to suppose that had the President
simply declared the rebel ports closed, that would
have lessened the work of the blockade to the navy,
or materially, if at all, simplified the foreign feature
of the case. This whole matter was in the diplo-
matic imagination, and on paper.
Nothing but a thorough and fearless blockade
would in any case have prevented English piracy, or
thwarted England's ravenous lust for Southern cotton
and Southern traffic. The Administration wisely saw
that between this blockade and war with England, as
an ignominious ally of the Slavery Rebellion, there
was no alternative. In amazement this envious and
unchristian power saw the growth of the American
Navy, its successful blockade of the vast coast, and
its wonderful feats of war. At the shrine of her
cnpidity England was ready to offer up all her former
hypocrisy and pretensions to Abolitionism. In the
ovGoO'^lc
J, Google
124 LIFE AND TDfEB OF
woald fbllow neglect should be & varDiag for as to be
prepared."
This was the sentiment wUob gave life and
strength to the American Navy at this oritioal period,
and so materially aided England in recollecting her
past experiences with America when no such spirit
controlled the administration of public affairs.
Long before the first blow was struck by the army
toward crushing the Rebellion, the navy was active
in some part of the vast work allotted to it, but the
first considerable naval expedition was not sent out
until August, 1861. On the 26th of this month a
fleet of seven war vessels, and a number of transport
steamers and others, under the command of Commo-
dore S. H. Stringham, and carrying nine hundred
troops under General Benjamin F. Butler, left Fortress
Monroe to begin the work of repossessing the Atlantic
coast, and breaking up the system of blockade run-
ning !in the patronage of England. On the following
day this formidable squadron arrived off Hatteras
Inlet, on the coast of North Carolina. This Is the
main inlet to Pamlico and Albemarle Sounds, and
the considerable inland water-system connected with
them. North of this inlet is the long, narrow, low,
sandy Hatteras Island, on which the rebels had built
two forts, Clark and Hatteras, commanded by Samuel
BiiiTon, a man whose false pretensions a few months
before had nearly gained the confidence of the Pres-
ident, and, thereby, an important post in the Navy
Department,
On the 28th three hundred of General Butler's
ovGoO'^lc
■*'Qfe'?'WS*QE''k "^
ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 12&
troops, with one gun, and very little ammunition and
no provisions, were landed a few miles above the
forts, the condition of the surf absolutely preventing
either the landing of supplies, or of more troops that
day. The attack on the forts was immediately begun^
and the next dny, before noon, Barron surrendered
onconditionally, with seven hundred men, twenty-five
caonon, and a thousand small arms. This was an
exceedingly valuable stroke to the national cause,
breaking, at the outset, the most easy and direct
road for the British supplies to reach Richmond.
But this work was not yet fully accomplished.
The shallow channels connecting Pamlico and Albe-
marle Sounds were still held by the rebels, strongly
fortified at several points on Roanoke Island. On
the 11th of January, 1862, a considerable fleet of
war-vessels, under Flag-ofQcer L. M. Qoldsborough,
■ carrying twelve thousand troops, commanded by Gen-
eral A. E. Burnside, sailed from Hampton Roads, and
two days after reached Hatteras Inlet. Here it was
found that many of the transport and other vess'els
which had been smuggled into the Government service
for this expedition were not only of too great draft
for the shallow inlet, but were also unseaworthy ; and
not for two weeks was the fleet able to get into
Pamlico Sound, and not then without serious losses.
At last, however, all obstacles were overcome, and
the attack on Roanoke Island began on the 7tb of
February by the fleet. That night Bumside landed
with the greater pari; of his force, and on the 8th,
after several sharp conflicts, the island with its forts
ov Google
126 LIFE AKD TIMES OF
and the greater part of the rehel troops, under Henry
A. Wise, fell into the hands of the Federals. The
rebel fleet was destroyed, and Elizabeth City^Wintoo,
and other depots on the main-land soon after were
captured. Thus, by the 4th of March, the navy had
not only done its full share of the work of putting
down the Rebellion, enabling the army to strike
blows where it never could have reached of itself^
bat it was now on the eve of settling the most
momentous point connected with the war, as will be
seen farther on.
ovGoo'^lc
ABRAHAM LINCOLN.
CHAPTER VI.
CONGRESS IN FIRST REGULAR SESSION UNDER MR. 1
COLN— FIRST ANNUAL MESSAGE— FOLLV OF HABE,
CO^^KS-MARTIAL LAW— THE CHIEF JUSTICE.
ON the 2d day of December, 1861, Cot^ess aj
met, and on tbe next day the President tr
mitted his
FIRST ANNUAL MESSAGE.
FaLLow-cmEBtra or the Srnatb and Hodsb op Rbpsbsbhtativi
In the midst of unpreoedeoted political troubles, we \
cause of great gratitude to Gk>d for unusual good health
most abundant harvests.
You will not be surprised to learn that, in the pec
exigencies of the times, our intercourse with foreign na
has been attended with profound solicitude, chiefly turning i
our own domestic affiiirs.
A disloyal portion of the American people have, daring
whole year, been engaged in an attempt to divide and det
the Union. A nation which endures factious domestic div
is exposed to disrespect abroad, and one party, if not bot
sure, sooner or later, to invoke foreign intervention.
Nations thus tempted to interfere are not always able t
9st the counsels of seeming expediency and ungenerous a
tion, although measures adopted under such influences sel
fail to be unfortunate and injurious to those adopting then:
Tbe disloyal citizens of the United Statee who have ofl
the ruin of our country in return for the iud and comfort «
they have invoked abroad, have received less patronage
encouragement than they probably expected. If it were ju
suppose, as the insui^ents have seemed to assume, that foi
ov Google
128 LIFE AND TIMES OF
iiatiotu, in this case, diacardiQg all moral, sodal, and treaty
obligationa, would act solely and selfishly for the most speedy
restoration of commerce, includiog; especially the acquigitiona of
cottoD, those nations appear, as yet, not to have seen their way
to their object more directly or clearly through the destruction
thaa through the preservation of the Union. If we could
dare to believe that foreign nations are actuated by no higher
priociple than this, I am quite sure a sound argument could be
made to show them that they con reach their aim more readily
and easily by aiding to crush this Rebellion than by ^ving
encouragement to it.
The principal lever relied on by the insurgents for exciting
foreign nations to hostility against us, as already intimated, is
the embarrassment of oommerce. Those nations, however, not
improbably, saw from the first that it was the Union which
made as well our forego as our domestic commerce. They
can scarcely have failed to perceive that the effort for disunion
produces the existing difficulty; and that one strong nation
promisee more durable peace, and a more extensive, valuable,
and reliable commerce, than can the same nation broken into
hostile fragments.
It is not my purpose to review our diseusmons with foreign
Slates; because whatever might be Uieir wishes or dispositions,
the integrity of our country and the stability of our Govern-
ment mainly depend, not upon them, but on the loyalty, virtue,
patriotism, and intelligence of the American people. The
correspondence itself, with the usual reservations, is herewith
submitted.
I venture to hope it will appear that we have practiced
prudence and liberality toward foreign powers, averting causes
of irritation, and with firmness maintaining our own rights and
honor.
Since, however, it is apparent that here, as in every other
State, foreign dangers necessarily attend domestic difficulties, I
recommend that adequate and ample measures be adopted for
maiutaining the public defenses on every ude. While, under
this general recommendation, provision for defending our sea-
coast line readily occurs to the mind, I also, in the same con-
nection, ask the attention of Congress to our great lakes and
ovGoO'^lc
ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 129
risers. It is believed timt aovae fordficatioiu and depots of
aims and maoitiona, with harbor and Davigalion improvements,
all at well-selected points upon these, would be of great im-
portance to the national defense and preeerration. I ask atteD-
tion to the views of the Secretary of War, expressed in his
report, upon the same general subject
I deem it of importance that the loyal r^ons of East Ten-
nessee and Western North Carolina should be connected with
EentBcky, and other faithful ports of the Union, by railroad.
I therefore recommend, as a military measure, that Congress
provide for the construction of such road as speedily as possible.
Kentucky, no doubt, will co-operat«, and, through her Legis-
latnre, make the most judicious selection of a line. The north-
ern terminus must connect with some existing nulrood; and
whether the route shall be firom Lexington or Nicholaaville to
the Cumberland Oap, or from Lebanon to the Teooewee line,
in tlie direction of Knoxville, or on some still different line, can
easily be determined. Kentucky and the General Government
co-operating, the work can be completed in a very short time ;
and when done, it will be not only of vast present usefulness,
but also a valuable permanent improvement, worth its cost in
all the Aiture.
Some treaties, designed chiefly for tbe iDtereets of com-
merce, and having no grave political importance, have been
D^otiated, and will be sabmitled to the Senate for their con-
sideration.
Althongh we have failed to induce some of the commercial
powers to adopt a denrable melioration of tbe rigor of mari-
time war, we have removed all obetructions from the way of
this humane reform, except such as are merely of temporary
and act^ental oocnrTence.
I invite your attention to the correspondence between Her
Britannic Majeety'e Minister, accredited to this Government,
and the Secretary of State, relative to tiie detention of the
British ship PerOuhin, in June last, by the United States
steamer SkeeoAutetti, for a supposed breach of the blockade.
As this detention was oocamoned by an obvious misapprehension
of tbe fads, and as justice requires that we should commit no
bell^went act not fbonded in strict right, as sanctioned by
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130 ' LIFE AHD HUES OF
public lav, I recommeDd that an appropriation be made to
satisfy the reasonable demand of the owners of the vessel for
her detention.
I repeat the recommendation of mj predecessor in his an-
nual message to Congress in December last, in regard to the
dispositioD of the surplus which will probably renjain after satis-
fying tbe claims of the American citJEens against China, pur-
suant to the awards of the commissioners under the act of the
3d of March, 1859: If, however, it should not be deemed ad-
visable to carry that reoommendatioa into effect, I would sug-
gest that authority be ^ven for investing the principal, over
the proceeds of the surplus referred to, in good securities, with a
view to the satiB&ction of such other just claims of our citizens
against China as are not unlikely to arise hereafter in the course
of OUT extensive trade with that empire.
By the act of the 6th of August last. Congress autlioriied
tbe President to instruct the commanders of suitable vessels to
defend themselves against and to capture pirat«s. This
authority has been exercised in a nngle instance only. For the
more effectual protection of our extensive siid valuable com-
merce, in the Eastern seas especially, it seems to me tliat it -
would also be advisable to authorize the commanders of sailing
vessels to recapture any prizes which pirates may make of
United Btates vessels and their cargoes, and the consular courts,
now established by law in Eastern countries, to adjudicate the
easel, in the eveot that this should not be objected to by the
local authorities.
If any good reason existB why we should persevere longer in
withholding our reoi^nition of the independence and sover-
eignty of Hayti and Liberia, I am unable to disoem it. Un-
willing, however, to inaugurate a novel poljcy in regard to them
without the approbation of Congress, I submit for your consid-
eration t^e expediency of an appropriation fur mtuntaiuing a
charg^ d'affaires near each of those new Btat«s. It does not
admit of doubt that important commensal advantages might be
secured by &vorable treaties with Htsra.
The operations of the Treasury during the period which has
elasped rince your adjournment have been conducted with signal
■access. The patriotism of the people has placed at the disposal
ov Google
ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 131
of the GoTernment tb« large meana demaoded by the .public
exigences. Much of the national loan has been taken by ciU-
xena of the industrial claaeea, wbose confidence in tbeir country's
fiuth, and zeal for their country's deliverance Ironi present peril,
have induced them to contribute to the support of the Guvem-
meot the whole of their limited acquisitions. This fact imposes
peculiar obligations to economy in disbursement and energy in
action.
The revenue from all sources, including loans, for the finan-
cial year ending im the SOtbuf June, 1861, was eighty-six mill-
ion eight hundred and thirty-Sve thousand nine hundred dollars
and twenty-seven cents, and the ezpenditures for the same
period, including payments on account of the public debt, were
eighty-four million five hundred and seventy-eight thousand
eight hundred and thirty-four dollars and furty-seven ceots ;
leaving a faalance in the treasury on the 1st of July of two mill-
ion two hundred and fifty-seven thousand and sixty-five dollars
and eighty cents. For the first quarter of the financial year
ending on the 80th of September, 1861, the receipts from all
sources, including the balance of the 1st of July, were one huor
dred and two million five hundred and thirty-two thousaod five
hundred and nine dollars and twenty-seven cents, and the ex-
penses ninety-eight naiUion two hundred and thirty-nine thou-
sand seven hundred and thirty-three dollars and niue cents;
leaving a balance on the Ist of October, 1861, of four million
two hundred and ninety-two thousand seven hundred and
■eventy-six dollars and eighteen ceots.
Estimates fiir the remaining three-quarters of the year, and
for the finuidal year 1863, t<^ther with his views of ways
and means for meeting the demands contemplated by them, will
be submitted to Congreas by the Secretary of the IVeasury. It
is gratifying to know that the expenditures made necessary by
the Rebellion are not beyond the resources of the loyal people,
and to believe that the same patriotism which has thus &r sus-
buned the Government will contJnae to sustain it till peace and
Union shall again bless the land.
I respectfully refer to the report of the Secretary of War
fat information respecting the numerical strength of the army^
and for reoommeDdations having in view an increase of its
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132 UFB AND TIMES OF
efficiency and the weU-being of tbe various branches of tbt
service intrusted to his care. It is gratifying to know that th«
patrioUsm of tbe people has proved equal to the occasion, and
that the number of troops tendered greatly ezoeeds the force
which CoDgresB authorized me to call into the field.
I refer vith pleasure to those portions of his report which
make allusion to tbe creditable d^ree of discipliue already at-
tained by our troope, and to the excellent sanitary condition of
the entire army.
The recommendation of the Secretary for an organisation of
the militia apon a uniform basia is a subject of vital importance
to tbe future safety of the country, and is oommended to the
serious attention of CongresB.
The large addition of the regular array, in connection with
the defection that has so considerably diminished the number
of its officers, gives peculiar importance to his recomniendatioa
for increasing the corps of cadete to tlie greatest capacity of
the Militery Academy.
By mere omission, I presume. Congress has failed to provide
chaplains for hospitals occupied by volunteers. This sul:ject
«as brought to my notice, and I 'was induced to drav up tbe
form of a letter, one copy of which, properly addressed, has
been delivered to each of the persons, and at the dates respect-
ively named and stated, in a schedule, containing also the form
of the letter, marked A, and herewith transmitted.
These geutlemen, I understand, eutered upon the duties
designated, at the times respectively stated in tbe schedule, and
have labored faithfully therdn ever since. I therefore recom-
mend that tbey be compeoaated at the same rate as cbaplains
in tbe army. I further suggest that general provision be made
for chaplains to serve at hospitals, as well as with regiments.
The report of the Secretary of the Navy presents in detail
the operations of that branch of the service, the activity and
energy which have characterized its administration, and the re-
sults of measures to iocrease its efficiency and power. Such
have been tbe additions, by construction and purchase, that it
may almost be said a navy has been created and brought into
service since our difficulties commenced.
Beddes blockading our extendve coast, squadrons larger than
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ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 133
ever before anembted under our flag have been pat afloat, and
performed deeds which have increased our naval renown.
I would invite special attention to the recommendation of
the Secretary for a more perfect organiEalJon of the navy by
introducing additional grades in the service.
The present organizatioa is defective and unsatisfactDry, and
the suf^^tions submitted by the Department will, it is believed,
if adopted, obviate the difficulties alluded to, promote har-
mony, and increaee the efficiency of the navy.
There are three vacaociea on the bench of the Supreme
Court — two by the decease of Justices Daniel and McLean,
and one by the resignation of Justice Campbell. I have eo
fiu" forborne making nominations to fill these vacancies for
reasons which I will now state. Two of the outgoing judges
resided within the States now overrun by revolt; so that if guo-
cessors were appointed in the same localities, they could not
DOW serve upon their circuits ; and many of the most competent
men th&e probably would not take the personal hazard of ac-
cepting to serve even here, upon the Supreme Bench. I have
been unwilling to throw all the appointments northward, thus
disabling myself &om doing justice to the South on tiie return
of peace ; although I may remark that to transfer to the North
one which has heretofore been in the South would not, with
nference to territory and population be unjust.
During the long and brilliant judicial career of Judge Mo-
Lean his circuit grew iuto an empire — altogether too lai^ for
any one judge to give the courts therein more than a nominal
attendance — rising in population from one million four hundred
and seventy thousand and eighteen in 1830, to six million one
hundred and fifty-one thousand four hundred and five in 1860.
Besides this, the country generally has outgrown our present
judicial system. If uniformity was at all intended, the system
requires that all the States shall be accommodated with circuit
courts, attended by supreme judges, while, in fact, Wisconsin,
Minnesota, Iowa, Kansas, Florida, Texas, California, and Ore-
gon have never had any such courts. Nor can this well be
remedied without a change in the system ; because the adding
of judges to the Supreme Court, enough for the accommodation
of all parte of the country, with circuit courts, would create a
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134 LIFE AND TIHE9 OF
oonrt altogether tw> numerons for > jndiml body of anj sort
Aud the evil, if it be one, will increase as new States come
into the Union. Circuit courts are useful, or they are not use-
ful; if useful, no State should be denied them ; if not useful,
no State should have them. Let ttiem be provided for all, or
abolished as to all.
Three modifications occur to me, either of which, I think,
would be an improvement upon our present system. Let the
Supreme Court be of convenient number in eveiy event.
Then, first, let the whole country be divided into circuits of
eonvenient sice, the supreme judges to serve in a number of
them corresponding to their own number, and independent cii>
ouit judges be provided for atl the rest. Or, secondly, let the
supreme judges be relieved from circuit duties, and circuit judges
provided for all the circuits. Or, thirdly, dispense with circuit
courts altogether, leaving the judicial functions whoUy to the
district courts, and an independent Supreme Court.
I respectfully recommend to the consideration of Congren
the present condition of the statute laws, with the hope that
Congreea will he able to find an easy remedy for many of the
in conveniences and evils which constantly embarrass those en-
gaged in the practical administration of them. Since the ot-
ganization of the Government, Congress has enacted some five
thousand acts and joint resolutions, which fill more than six
thousand closely printed pages, and are scattered through many
volumes- Many of these acts have been drawn in haste and
without sufficient caution, so that their provisions are often ob-
scure in themselves, or in conflict with each other, or at least so
doubtful as to ronder it very difficult for even the best informed
persons to ascertain precisely what the statute law roally is.
It seems to me very important that the statute laws should
be made as plain and intelligible as possible, and be reduced to
as small a compass as may consist with the fullness and precisioo
of the will of the Legislature and the perspicuity of its language.
This, well done, would, I think, greatly facilitate the labors of
tiioae whose duty it is to asaiU in the administration of the
laws, and woald be a lasting benefit to the people, by placing
before them, in a more accemible and intelligible form, the laws
which BO deeply concern their interests and their duties.
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ABfiauHAM LINCOLN. 13S
I am informed by some whose opiDioDa I respect, that all
the acts of Congress now in force, and of a permaneDt and gea-
«ial nature, might be revised and rewritten, so as to be em-
braced in one volume (or, at most, two Tolumee), of ordinary
and convenient size. And I respectfully recommend to Cou-
gresB to consider of Uie subject, and, if my eu^eslion be ap-
proved, to devise such plan as to thdr wisdom shall seem most
proper for tbe attunment of the end proposed.
One of the unavoidable cfmeequenceB of the present insurrec-
tion is tbe entire suppressioo, in many places, of all the ordi-
nary means of administering oivil justice by the officers and in
the forms of exietiog law. This ia the case, in whole or in
part, in all the ioBui^ut States; and as our armies advance
upon and take possession of parts of those States, the practical
evil becomes more apparent There are no courts nor officers
to whom Uie dtiaens of other States may apply fur the eoforoe-
nent of their lawful claims against citizens of the insurgent
Aates; and there is a vast amount of debt constituting such
duma. 6ome have estimated it as high as two hundred million
dollars, due, in large part, from iDSurgents, in open rebellion,
to loyal citizens, who are, even now, making great sacrifices, in
the discbarge of their patriotic duty, to support the Goveruroeat.
Under these circumstances, I have beeu urgently solicited to
eatablish, by military power, courts to administer summary jus-
tice in snch cases. I have thus for declined to do it, not be-
cause I had any doubt tbat the end proposed — the collection of
the debts — was just aud right in itself, but because I bave been
unwilling to go beyond the pressure of necessity in the uAusual
exerdse of power. But the powers of Congress, I suppo^, are
equal to the anomalons occaston, and therefore I refer the whole
matter to Congress, with the hope that a plan may be devised
for the administration of justice in all such parts of the insur-
gent States and Territoriee as may be under tbe control of this
Qovemment, whether by a voluntary return to allegiance and
order, or by the power of our arms. This, however, not to be
a permanent institution, but a temporary substitute, and to
cease as soon as the ordinary courts can be re-established in peace.
It is important tbat some more convenient means should be
provided, if poasible, for the adjustment of claims against the
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136 UFE AND TIMES OF
OoTeniment, eepeciaUj io view of their iDcreaaed number b^
reaaoD of the war. It is as much the duty of govemmeDt to
render prompt jnatice agftinst itself, in &vor of citizens, as it is
(o admioister the same between private indtTiduals. The inve*-
tigation and adjudication of claims, in their nature, belong to
the judicial department; besides, it is apparent that the atten-
tion of Congress will be more than usually engaged for some
time to come with great national questions. It was intended,
by the organization of the Court of Claims, mainly to remove
this branch of business from the halls of Congress; but while
the court has proved to be an effecdve and valuable means of
investigation, it in a great d^ree &ils to effect the object of its
creation for want of power to make its judgments final.
. Fully aware of the delicacy, not to say the danger, of the
subject, I commend to your careful consideration whether this
power of making judgments final may not properly be given to
the court, reserving the right of appeal on queetiooe of law to
the Supreme Court, with such other proviuons as experieuce
nay have shown to be necessary.
I ask attention to the report of the Postmaster-General, the
foUowiDg being a summary statement of the condition of the
Department : —
The revenue from all sources during the fiscal year ending
June 30, 1661, including the annual permanent appropriation
of seven hundred thousand dollars for the transportation of
"free mail matter," was niue million forty-nine thousand two
hundred and ninety-ux dollars and forty cents, b^g about two
per cent less than the revenue for I860.
The expenditures were thirteen million six hundred and ox
thousand seven hundred and fifty-nine dollars and eleven cents,
showing a decrease of more than eight per cent as compared
with those of the previous year, and leaving an excess of ex-
penditure over the revenue tbr the last fiscal year of four mill-
ion five hundred and fifty-seven thousand four hundred and
rixty-two dollars and seventy-one cents.
The gross revenue for the year ending June 30, 1863, is es-
timated at an increase of four per cent on that of 1861, making
eight million six hundred and eighty-three thousand dollars, to
which should be added the earnings of the Department in car-
:b,GOO'^IC
ABRAHAM UNCOUf. 137
r^g free matter, viz.: seven hundred thousand dollars, making
sine million three fauudi«d and eightj-three thouiand dollars.
The total expenditures for 1863 are esLimated at twelve
million five hundred and twenty-eight thousand dollars, leaving
an estimated deficiency of three milliou one bundred and forty-
five thousand dollars to be supplied from the Treasury, in addi-
tion to the permanent appropriation.
The present insurrection shows, I think, that the extensioo
of this District across the Potomac Kiver, at the time of estab-
lishing the Capital here, was eminently wise, and consequently
that the relinquishment of that portion of it which lies within
the State of Virginia was unwise and dangerous. I submit for
your consideration the expediency of regMoing that part of the
IKetrict, and the restoratJon of the original boundaries thereof,
through negotiations with the State of Virginia.
The report of the Secretary of the Interior, with the accnm-
ponying documents, exhibits the condition of the several branches
of the public bueioees pertaining to that Department. The de-
presnng influences of the insurrection have been specially felt
in the operations of the Patent and General Land Offices. The
cash receipts from the sales of public lands during the past
year have exceeded the expenses of our land system only aboat
two hundred thousand dollars. The sales have been entirely
suspended in the Southern Stales, while the interruptions to
the business of the country, and the diversions of large num-
bers of men A^m labor to military service, have obstructed set-
tlements in the new States and Territories of the Northwest.
The receipts of the Patent Office have declined in nine
months about one hundred thousand dollars, rendering a large
reduction of the force employed necessary to make it self-sus-
taining.
The demands upon the Pension Office will be largely in-
creased by the iDBorrectioD. Numerous applications for pen-
nons, based upon the casualties of the existing war, have already
been made. There is reason to believe that many who are now
upon the penfflon-rolls, and in receipt of the bounty of the Gov-
erament, are in the ranks of the insurgent army, or giving
them -aid and comfort The Secretary of the Interior has di-
rected a suspension of the payment of the pensious of such per-
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138 UFE AND TIMES OF
eotifl upon the proof of their dislojaltj. I recommend that
Congreae authorize that officer to cause the names of such per-
sons to be Btrickea Irom the peasbn-rolls.
The relations of the OoverumeDt with the Indian tribes
have been greatlj disturbed by the insurrection, especially in
the Southera Superioteodency and in that of New Mexico.
The Indian country south of Kansas is in the poeeenion of in<
aurgents from Texas and Arkansas. The agenta of the United
States ^pointed since the 4th of March for this superintendency
have been unable to reach their poets, while the most of those
who were in office before that time have espoused the insurreo-
tionary cause, and assume to exercise the powers of agents by
virtue of commissions from the insurrectionists. It has been
stated in the public press that a portion of those Indians have
been organized as a military force, and are attached to the
army of the insurgents. Although the Oovemment has no
official ioformadon upon this subject, letters have been writtwt
to the CummiBMOner of Indian Affiiirs by several prominent
chiefi, giving assurance of their loyalty to the United States,
and expressing a wi^ for the presence of Federal troops to pro-
tect them. It is believed that upon the repossesmon of the
country by the Federal forces, the Indians will readily cease all
hostile demonstrations, and resume their former relations to the
Goverument.
Agriculture, confeseedly the largest interest of the Nation,
has not a department nor a bureau, but a clerkship Mily,
assigned to it in the Gtovemment. While it b fortunate that
this great interest is so independent in its nature as not to have
demanded and extorted more from the Government, I respecU
fully ask Congress to consider whether something more can not
be given voluntarily with general advant^e.
Annual reports exhibiting the condition of our agriculture,
commerce, and manufacturee, would present a fund of informa-
tiou of great practical value to the country. While I make no
suggestion as to details, I venture the opinion that an agricol-
tural and statistical bureau might profitably be oi^;anized.
Tbe execution of the laws for the suppression of the African
slave-trade has been confided to the Department of the Interior.
It is a subject of gratulation that the efforts which have been
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- JJ|P^.IP ■:■
ABRAHAM LINCOLtr. 139
mftde for the Nf^rreariou of tbis inhuman tra£Sc have been re-
cently attended with unusual euoceas. Five vessela being fitted
oat for tbe dave-trade have been eeiied and condemned. Two
mates of vessels engaged in tbe trade, and one person in equip*
ping a vessel as a slaver, have been convicted and subjected to
the penalty of fine and imprison ment, and one captain, taken
with a cargo of Africans on board bis vessel, has been convicted
of die highest grade of ofiense under our laws, the puuisfament
of which is death. '
Tbe Territories of Colorado, Dakota, and Nevada, created
by the last Congress, have been organized, and civil admiuistra-
tioa has been inaugurated therein under auspices especially
gratifying, when it is considered that the leaven of treason was
found existing in some of theee new countries wben the Federal
officers arrived there.
The abundant natural resources of these Territories, with the
security and protection afforded by organized government, will
doubtless mvite to them a large immigratioD when peace shall
restore the bumness of the country to its accustomed channels.
I submit tbe resolutions of the L^slature of Colorado, which
evidence the patriotic spirit of tbe people of the Territory. So
ftr, the authority of the United States has been upheld in all
the Territoriee, as it is hoped it will be in the future. I com-
mend their interests and defense to the enlightened and generous
care of Congress.
I recommend to the favorable consideration of Congress the
■nieresta of the District of Columbia. Tbe insurrection has
been the cause of much suffering and sacrifice to its inhabitants,
and as they have no representative in Congress, that body should
not overloc^ their just claims upon the Govemraent.
At your late session a joint resolution was adopted author-
iting tbe Presdent to take measures for facilitating a proper
representation of the industrial interests of the United States
at the exhibition of the industry of all nations, to be holden at
London in tbe year 1862. I regret to say I have been unable
to give personal attention to this subject — a subject at once so
interesting in itself, and so extensively and intimately con-
nected with the material prosperity of the world. Through
tbe Secretaries of State and of the Interior, a plan or system
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140 LIFE AND TIMES OF
has been devised and pardj matured, and which will be laid
before yon.
Under aod by virtue of the Act of CoDgreas, eDtitled, "An
Act to confiscate property used for insurrectionary purposes,"
approved August 6, 1861, the legal claims of certain persons
to the labor and service of certain other persons have become
Vorfeit^d; and numbers of the latter thus liberated are already
dependent on the United Slates, aod must be provided for in
some way. Besides this, it is not imposeihle that some of the
Stat«s will pass similar enactments for their own benefit respect-
ively, and by operation of which persons of the same class
will be thrown upon them for disposal. In such case I recom-
mend that CuDgress provide fur accepting sudi persons from
such States according to some mode of valuation, in lieu, pro
lanto, of direct taxes, or upon some other plan to be agreed on
with such States, respectively; that such gersons, ou such
acceptance by the General Government, be at once deemed
tne; and that, in any event, steps be talcen for colonizing both
classes (or the one Srst mentioned, if the other shall not be
brought into existence) at some place or places in a climate
congenial to them. It might be well to consider, too, whether
the free colored people already in the Uniterl States eould not, so
&r as individuals may desire, be included in such colonization.
To carry out the plan of colonization may involve the acqutr*
ing of territory, and also the appropriation of money beyond
that to he expended in the territorial acquiation. Having
practiced the acquiution of territory for nearly sixty years,
the question of Constitutional power to do so is no longer an
open one with us. The ptwer was questioned at first by Mr.
Jefferson, who, however, in the purchase of Louisiana, yielded
his scruples on the plea of great expediency. If it be said that
the only l^itimate object of acquiring territory is to furnidi
homes for white men, tiiis measure e&ecis that object, for the
emigration of colored men leaves additional room for white men
remaining or coming here. Mr. Jefferson, however, placed the
importance of procuring Louisiana more on political and com-
mercial grounds than on providing room for population.
On this whole proposition, including the appropriation of
money with the acquisition of territory, does not the expediency
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ABRAHAM LINCOLN; 141
unount to absolute necesaity — that without which the Govern-
meut itself <nn not be perpetuated ?
The war contiauee. In consideriug the policy to be adopted
for auppresaiDg the iDSurrection, I have been anxious aod
ctireful that the inevitable conflict for this purpose shall not
degenerate into a violent and remoraelesB revolutionary stmggle-
I have therefore, in every case, thought it proper to keep the
int^rity of the Union prominent as the primary object of the
contest on our part, leaving all questions which are not of
vital military importance to the more deliberate action of the
Legislature.
In the exercise of my best discretion, I have adhered to the
blockade of the ports held by the iosurgents, instead of putting
in force, by prockunation, the law of Congress enacted at the
late session for cloung those ports.
So, also, obeying the dictates of prudence as well as the
ohiigstiona of law, instead of transcending, I have adhered to
the act of CoDgress to confiscate property used for insurrec-
tionary purposes. If a new law upon the same subject shall be
proposed, its propriety will be duly conwdered. The Union
must be preserved; and hence all indispensable means must be
employed. We should not be in haste to determine that rad-
ical and extreme measures, which may reach the loyal as well
as the disloyal, are indispensable.
The Inaugural Address at the banning of the Administra-
tion, and the message te Congress at the late special session,
were both mainly devoted to the domeetio controversy out of
which the insurrection and consequent war have sprung. Noth-
ing now occurs to add or subtract to or from de principles or
general purposes stated and expressed in those documents.
The last ray of hope for preserving the Union peaceably
expired at the assault upon Fort Sumter; and a general review
of what has occurred since may not be unprofitable. What was
punfuUy uncertain then is much better defined and more dis-
tinct now; and the progress of events is pliunly in the right
direction. The insnrgente confidently claimed a strong support
ftom north of Mason and Dixon's line, and the friends of the
Union were not free flrom apinehenrion on the point. This,
however, was soon settled definitely, and on die right ride.
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142 UFE AND TIMES OF
South of the line, noble little Delanwe led off right from Uie
first. MarylaDd was made to teem againet the Unioo. Our
■oldiers were assaulted, bridges were burned, and railroads torn
up within her limits, and we were many days, at one time, witli-
ont the ability to bring a single regiment over her soil to the
Capital- Now her bridges and railroadB are repaired and open
to the Government; slie already gives seven regiments to the
cause of the Union, and none to the enemy; and her people, at
a regular election, have sustained the Union by a larger majority
and a larger ag^^^iate vote than tliey ever hefore gave to any
candidate or any question. Kentucky, too, for some time in
doubt, is now decidedly, and, I think, unchangeably, ranged on
the side of the Union. Missouri is comparatively quiet, and,
I believe, can not again be overrun by the insurrectionists.
These ihree States of Maryland, Kentiicky, and Missouri,
neither of which would promise a single soldier at first, have
now an aggregate of not lees than forty thousand in the field
for the Union ; while of thdr citizens certainly not more than
a ttiird of that number, and they of doubtful whK'eabouts and
doubtful esiBtence, are in arms agunst it Afler a somewhat
bloody struggle of months, winter closes on the Union people of
Western Virginia, leaving them masters of their own country.
An insurgent force of about fifteen hundred, for months
dominating the narrow peninsular region, ccmsdtntiDg the coun-
ties of Accomack and Northampton, and known as the eastern
shore of Virginia, together with some contiguous parts of Mary-
land, have laid down their arms; and the people there have
renewed their allegiance to and accepted the protection of the
old flag. This leaves do armed insurrectionist north of the
Potomac or eaet of the Chesapeake.
AIbo, we have obtained a footing at each of the isolated points,
on the southern coast, of Hatteras, Port Royal, Tybee Island
near Savannah, and Ship Island ; and we likewise have some
general accounts of popular movements in behalf of the Union
in North C^rolioa and Tennessee.
These things demonstrate that the cause of the Union is
advancing steadily and certainly southward.
Since your last adjournment Lieu tenant-General Bcott has
retired from the head of the army. During his long life the
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ABRAHAH UNGOLN. 143
Nation has not been nnmindful of his merit ; yet on calling to
mind hov faithrully, ably, and brilliaatl; he has served the
countiy, from a time &r back in our history, when few of the
Duw living had been born, and thenceforward continuallj, I can
not bat think we are still bia debtors. I submit, therefore, for
your consideration what l\irtber mark of recognition ia due to
him and to ourselves as a grateful people.
With the retirement of General Scott came tbe Executive
duty of appointing in his stead a General-in-Chief of tbe army.
It is a fortunate circumstance that neither In council nor coun-
try was there, so fiv as I know, any diSerence of opinion as to
the proper person to be selected. The retiring chief repeatedly
ezpreaeed his judgment in &vor of General McClellau for the
podtion, and in this tbe Nation seemed to give a unaaimous
concurrence. The designation of General McCIellan is, there-
fore, in considerable degree, the selection of tbe country as well
as of the Executive; and, hence, there is better reason to hope
there will be given him the confidence and cordial support thus,
by fair implication, promised, and without which he can not,
with so full efficieni^, serve the country.
It has been said that one bad general is better than two
good ones; and tbe saying is true, if taken to mean no more
tlian that an army i^ better directed by a single mind, though
interim, than by two superior ones at variance and cross-
purposes with each other.
And the same is true in all joint operations wherein those
engaged can have none but a oomnaon end in view, and eon
difler only as to the choice of means. In a storm at sea no one
on board eon wish the ship to sink, and yet, not unfrequently,
all go down together because too many will direct and no single
mind can be allowed to control.
It continues to develop that tbe insurrection is largely, if
not exdusively,' a war upon the first principle of popular gov-
emmeDt — tbe rights of the people. Conclusive evidence of this
is found in the most grave and maturely considered public docu-
ments, as well as in the general t^me of the insurgents. In
those docuiueuts we find the abridgment of the existing right
of euflrage and the denial to tbe people of all right to parljci-
pale in tlie aeleotion of public officers, except the legislative.
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144 LIFE AND TIMES OF
boldly advocated, with labored arguments to prove that large
control of the people in government is the source of all political
evil. Monarchy itself is sometimes hinted atas a possible refuge
from the power of the people.
In my present position I could scarcely be justified were I
to omit rainng a warning voice sgunit this approach of retuni-
iug despotism.
It is not needed nor fitting here that a general argument
should be made id bvor of popular institutions ; but there is
one p<»Dt, with its connections, not so hackneyed as most others,
to which I ask a brief attention. It is the effort to place eapilat
on an equal footing with, if not above labor, in the structure of
government. It is assumed that labor is available only tn con-
necUon with capital ; that nobody labors unless somebody else,
owning capital somehow, by the use of it induces him to labor.
This assumed, it is next considered whether it is best that cap-
ital eball hire laborers, and thus induce them to work by their
own consent, or buy them, and drive them to it without thdr
consent. Having proceeded so far, it is naturally concluded
that all laborers are dther Aired laborers, or what we call slaves.
And further, it is assumed that whoever 'is once a hired laborer
is fixed in that condition fur life.
Now, there is no such relation between capital and labor aa
assumed ; nor is there any sucb thing as a free man being fixed
for life in the condition of a hired laborer. Both these amumj^
dons are faiss, and all inferences from tJiem are groundlese.
Ijabor is prior to and independent of cajutal. Capital is
only the fruit of labor, and could never have existed if labor
had not first existed. Labor is the superior of capital, and de-
serves much the higher oonsideraUon. Capital has its rights,
which are as worthy of protection as any other rights. Nor
is it denied that there is, and probably always will be, a re-
lation between labor and capital producing mutual benefits.
The error is in assuming that the whole labor of community
exists within that relation. A few men own capital, and that
few avoid labor themselves, and with their capital hire or buy
another few to labor for them. A large m^rity belong to
neither class — neither work for others nor have others working
for tbem. In moM of the Southern States a majority of the
ovGoO'^lc
ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 145.
wbole people, of all colon, are neither slaves nor masters, while
in the Northern States a large majority are neither hirers nor
faired. Men, with their &miliee — wives, sons, and daughters —
work for themselves, on their farms, in their houses, and in
thdr shops, taking the whole product to themselves, and ask<
log no- &Tors of capital, on the one hand, nor of hired la-
borers or slaves oa the other. It is not forgotten that a con-
siderable number of persons mingle their own labor with capital ;
that is, they labor with their own hands, and also buy or hire
others to labor for them ; but this is only a mixed and not a
distinct class. No principle stated is disturbed by the existence
of this mixed class.
Again, as has already been said, there is not, of necesra^,
any such thiug as the free hired laborer being fixed to that con-
dition for li&. Maoy indepeudent men everywhere in these
States, a few years bock in their lives, were hired laboreie.
The prudent, penniless beginner in the world, labors for w^es
awhile, saves a surplus with which to buy tools or land for him-
self, then labors on his own account another while, and at
length hires another new banner to help bim. This is the just
and generous and prosperous system, which opens the way to
all, gives hope to all, and consequent energy and progress and
improvement of condition to all. No men living are more
worthy to be trusted than thoee who toil up from poverty ;
none lese inclined to take or touch aught which they have not
honestly earned. Let them beware of surrendering a polilioal
power which they already possess, and which, if surrendered,
wiU enrely be used to close the door of advancement agunst
snch as they, and to fix new disabilities and burdens upon them,
till all of liberty shall be lost.
From the Brst taking of our national census to the last
are seventy years; and we find our population at the end of
Uie period eight times as great as it was at the beginning.
The increase of those other things which men deem denrable
has been even greater. We thus have at one view what the
popular principle, applied to government through the machin-
ery of the States and the Union, has produced in a given time,
and also what if firmly maintained, it promises for the ftituie.
There are already among as those who, if the Union be pi«-
ov Google
146 LIFE AND TIMES OP
nrved, will live to see it coDtain two hundred and tfty milJionB,
The itruggle of to-day is not altogether for tn-day ; It ia fbr a
vast future also. \nth a reliance on Providence all the more
firm and eameet, let us proceed in Uta great tadc wliich events
have devolved upon ua.
In this message Mr. LidcoIq did not deem it neces-
sary to give even a general history of events since
the last session of Congress. The war oontinned,
and the main object was the fuTtherlng of the means
to bring it to a close in a way to preserve the in-
tegrity and honor of the Union. He refers to his
former message and his inaugural address fbr the
principles of his policy which he yet saw no need of
greatly modifying. He calls attention to the act of
the 6th of August providing for the confiscation of
the property of rebels, and indicates the necessity of
some arrangement for taking care of the negroes that
were, under that act, falling into the hands of the
anthorities, and suggests colonization as the proper
outlet for these people. Otherwise the slavery ques-
tion is not mentioned. But afler saying that he had
conformed to the provision of Congress for confiscat-
ing only such property as was used in forwarding the
purposes of rebellion, he makes the very significant
remark that, " if a new law on the same subject shall
be proposed, its propriety will be duly considered.
The Union must be preserved ; and hence all indis-
pensable means must be employed. We should not
be in haste to determine that radical and extreme
measures, which may reach the loyal as well as the
disloyal, are indispensable." There need be no cavil
ovGoO'^lc
INCOLN. 147
[)rief pointer. One false
iir frieDds, the President
., that there would be no
g it out in some way, or
iring the more sare and
Here, as Id most other
iiarly fit to represent the
This quality was, per-
BFS rendering him most
tied. Upon this feeling
int, was based Mr. Lin-
igress of the recognition
}ria and Hayti, and the
relations with them ns
t be worth while here to
folly of such a recom-
ended on (he 17th of
muQ work was in sup-
I army, some of its acts
, and one of them espe-
of a new era in tiie na-
passed in favor of the
lering of settlements on
jhment of polygamy, for
to the writers when sent
etter ofSoe," and for the
rift. At this session pro-
le issue of legal-tender
Ls and snocessful Oreen*
[r. Chase.
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148 LIFE AND TIUES OF
The Democratic Congressmen now began n con-
stant and persistent opposition to what they styled
"arbitrary and unconstitutional" arrests of suspected
or actual sympathizers and aiders and abettors in the
Rebellion, residing in the Free States, and the border
Slave States held under the authority of the Govern-
ment. These men took the erroneous and pitiable
position that whatever the Goverment did toward
ornshing the Rebellion in the South, it must do noth-
ing to that end in the loyal North among those who
were doing what they could to clog its way to suc-
cess. During the special session of July, 1861, this
session, and every subsequent one, this annoying and
pestilential work went on. Some of these misguided
men even became so bold as to declare openly in their
places in Congress that the " Southern Confederacy "
should be acknowledged ; and no opportunity was
ever lost by them to abuse, slander, or misrepresent
the Administration, and criticise and condemn its war
and general policy. Some of these men were repri-
manded iind censured, and a few of them, when en-
durance had ceased to be a virlne, were expelled,
but in the main they went ' unmolested, and never
rested from their evil work and evil influence.
The suspension of the writ of habeas corpus be-
came a never-ending theme among these men for
misrepresenting the tendencies of the Administration, '
and disturbing the wrong-minded and weak. The
cry about this writ in America never has been any-
thing but political quackery and demagogism. Pa-
triots and honest men, men whose deeds were in
ovGoO'^lc
J, Google
160 LIFE AND TIMES OF
case, the Conrt has no power ntider the law to order the
neoeasaiy force to oompet the appearance of the party. If,
however, he mu before the Court, it would then impose
the only punifthment; it is empowered to inflict — that by
fine and imprisonmeDt."
The Ju(^ put on file a full exposition of hia
viewn on the subject, holding on the main issue the
doctrine which gave the backiDg to the Northern
sympathizers, and by many was taken as evidence
of his stAnding with them : —
" 1. The President, under the Constitution and laws
of the United States, can not suspend the privil^e of the
writ of }uU>eat eorput, nor authorize any military officer to
do 60.
" 2. A military officer has no right to arrest and detain
a person, not subject to the rules and articles of war, for au
offense against the laws of the United States, except in and
of the judicial authority and subject to its control ; and if
the party is arrested by the military, it is the dnty of the
officer to deliver him over immediately to the cavil aathor-
ity, to be dealt with according to law."
The whole tenor of the old Justice's review of
the case, if it does not show his sympathy with the
Rebellion, or with its friends in the North, an'1 bis
disposition to set up a troublesome opposition to the
administration of affairs greater than could possibly
come under his jurisdiction at the most critical period
of the Dfttiooal career, certainly shows that he was
unable, from age or other causes, to comprehend such
a crisis.
Attorney-General Bates, who was at least as well
ovGoO'^lc
p^ppr^'--
ABRAHAM LINOOLN. 151
qualified as the Chief Justice to give aa opinion on
this matter, naked the questions: —
" 1. In the present time of b great and dangerous in-
surrection, bos the President the discretionary power to
canse to be arrested and held in custody persons known
to have crinjinal intercourse with the insurgents, or per-
sons against whom there is probable cause for suspicion
of such criminal complicity f
" 2. In such cases of arrest, is the President justified
in refusing to obey a writ of habeas eorpue issued by a
court or a jadge, requiring him or his agent to produce
the body of the prisoner, and show the cause of his cap-
tion and detention, to be adjudged and disposed of by
such court or judge?"
Apd then a£Bnned them, supporting his position
with a frank and careful argument. As an apology
for Uie folly of giving any opinion, the Attorney-
General wrote : —
" Whatever I have said about the suspension of the
privilege of the writ of haietu eorptts has been said in
deference to the opinions of others, and not beoanse I my-
self thought it necessary to treat of that suhjeot at all in
reference to the present posture of our national affairs.
For, not doubting the power of the President to capture
and hold by force insurgents in open arms against the
Government and to arrest and imprison their suspected
accomplices, I never thought of first suapendiog the writ
of hdieas eorpus any more than I thought of first suspend-
ing the writ of replevin before seizing arms and munitions
destined for the enemy."
Horace Binney and the learned Theophilus Par-
sons, who had no superiors, and few if any equals, in
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152 LIFE AND TIMES OF
Constitutional law, expressed views wholly averse to
those of the Chief Justice. Id his pamphlet on the
subject, Mr. Binney says : —
"It is further objected, that this is a moBt dangerous
power. It is, fortunately, confined to moat dangerous
times. In such times the people generally are willing,
and are often compelled to give up, for a season, a portion
of their freedom to preserve the rest; and fortunaiely,
again, it is that portion of the people, for the most part,
who like to live on the mai^in of disobedience to the
laws, vhose freedom is most to danger. The reat are
rarely in want of a habeas corpus."
Certainly. Why should an honest, fair, and just
man - be so occupied about matters only concerDiog
the dishonest, and which are seldom likely to affect
or disturb the honest?
Judge Parsons, in his opinion on the habeas corpus
iind martial law, said : —
" The first and most important question is, Who may
decide when the exigency occurs, and who may, if it oc-
curs, declare martial law? On this point I have my-
self no doubt. The clause on this subject is cootained in
the first article of the Constitution, and this article relates
principally to Congress. Nor can there be any doubt
that Congress may, when the necessity occurs, suspend the
right to the writ of habeas corpus, or, which is the same
thing, declare or authorize martial law. The question is.
Has the President this power? The Constitution does not
expressly give this power to any department of Govern-
ment, nor does it expressly reserve it to Congress, although,
in the same article, it does make this express reservation
as to some of the provisions contained in the article. This
ovGoO'^lc
J, Google
154 UFE AND TIMES OF
or propriety, I suppose that he vould of oonrse report
his doings in sach a matter to Congress when he oould,
and be governed \>y their aotioD.
" My conclusion is, therefore, that in case of invasion
from abroad or rebellion at home, the President may de-
clare, or exercise or authorize, martial law at his discretion."
It may now be briefly said that the President
had first authorized Qeneral Scott, on the 27th of
April, 1861, to suspend the writ of habeas eorpw on
the line of communication between Washington and
Philadelphia, if he saw that the safety of the oonotry
demanded it. Early in July the entire military line
to New York was brought under this order. In May
the commander on the Florida coast was authorized
to suspend this writ. In October, 1861, General
McGlellnn authorized General Banks to suspend the
habeas corpm, if he saw fit, in carrying out the order
to arrest the members of the Legislature. And this
form of appointment was given to military governors
in the following year: —
" War Department, Washihoton City, D. C, 1
" May 19, 1862. (
" Sib,— You are hereby appointed Military Governor
of the State of North Carolina, with authority to exercise
and perform within the limits of that State all and singu-
lar the powers, duties, and functions pertaining to the office
of Military Governor (including the power to establish all
necessary offices and tribunals, and suspend the writ of
tuAeat eorpas) during the pleasure of the President, or
until the loyal inhabitants of that State shall oi^nise fl
civil government in conformity with the Constitution of
the United States.
" Edwin M. Stantos, Secretary of War."
ovGoO'^lc
ABRAHAM UNOOLN. ]
The two following orders were subsequently p
mulgated coveriDg this whole subject, mainly, duri
the war : —
" Wahhinotoh, September 24th.
" Whereas, It has become necessary to call into sei
ioe, not only volunteers, bat also portions of the mili
of the State by draft, in order to suppress the in'sitrrecti
existing in the United States, and disloyal persons are i
adequately restrained by the ordinary pro<JesseB of 1
from hindering this measure, and from giving aid a
comfort in various ways to the insurrection ;
"Now, therefore, be it ordered :
"Firat. That during the existing insurrection, and a
neoeasary measure for suppressing the same, all rebels a
insni^nts, their aiders and abettors, within the Unil
States, and all persons discouraging volunteer enlistmen
resisting military drafts, or gnilty of any disloyal pract
affording aid and comfort to the rebels against the authi
ity of the United States, shall be subject to martial Is
and liable to trial and punishment by conrts-martial
military commission.
" Second. That the writ of habeas corpus is 8nspen<3
in respect to all persons arrested, or who are now, or he
after during the Kebellion shall be, imprisoned in a
fort, camp, arsenal, military prison, or other place of ct
finement, by any military authority, or by the sentence
any court-martial or military commission.
" In witness whereof, I have hereunto set my ba
and caused the seal of the United States to be affixed.
" Done at the CSty of ^Vasbington, this twenty-foui
day of September, in the year of our Lord c
thousand eight hundred and sixty-two, and of i
Independence of the United States the eigbi
seventh. Abbahah Lincoln.
" By the President :
" Wm . H. Skwabd, Secretary of State."
ov Google
156 LIFE AND TIMES OF
" Whereab, The Coaatitution of the United States baa
ordained that the privilege of the writ of habeas corput
ehall not be suspended unless when iu cases oT rebellion or
invasion the public safety may require it; and
"Whereas, a rebellion was existing on tbe 3d day
of March, 1863, which Rebellion ie Btill existing ; and
"Whebeas, by a statute which was approved on that'
day it was enacted by the Senate and House of Represent-
atives of the United States in Congress assembled, that
during the present insurrection the President ofthe United
States, whenever in his judgment the public safety may re-
require, is authorized to suspend the privil^e of the writ
oi habeas oorpuB in any case throughout tbe United States,
or any part thereof; and
" Whebeab, in the judgment of the President the pub-
lic safety does require that the privilege of the said writ
shall now be suspended throughout the United States in
the cases where, by the authority of the President of the
United States, military, naval, and civil officers of the
Uuited States, or any of them, hold persona under their
command or in their custody, either as prisoners of war,
spies, or aiders or abettors of the enemy, or officers,
soldiers, or seamen enrolled or drafted or mustered or
enlisted in or belonging to the land or naval forces of the
United States, or as deserters therefrom, or otherwise
amenable to the military law or the Rules and Articles
of War, or the rules or regulations prescribed for the mili-
tary or naval services by authority of tbe President of
the United States, or for resisting a draft, or for any other
offense against the military or naval service:
" Now, therefore, I, Abraham Lincoln, President of
the United States, do hereby proclaim and make known
to all whom it may concern, that the privilege of the writ
of hc^de corjma is suspended throughout the United
States in the several cases before mentioned, and that this
Buspeusion will continue throughout the duration of the
ovGoO'^lc
157
n ahall, by a sub-
■nt of tb« Uaited
do hereby require
vil otBcers with id
Hhers in the mili-
itatea, to take dis-
give it full effect,
) to conduct and
mformity with the
e laws of Congress
UDto set my hand
lited States to be
ber, 1833, and the
•tates of America
JAM Lincoln.
! following year,
ucky, the Preai-
pendiDg the writ
le 6th of March,
I to Congress : —
KBPtmaNTATIVES :
resolutioa by your
ly as follows :
to co-operate with
ishment of slavery,
led by such State in
es, public and
ition does not meet
, there is the end ;
era it of importance
irested should be at
they may begm to
ov Google
168 UFE AND TIMES OF
oonridw whether to accept or reject it The FedemI Oovero-
ment would find its higbeet interest in auch a ueflsuro as one
of the most efficient means of eelf-preaervatjon. The leaden
of the existing insurrection entertain the hope that this Got-
ernment will ultimately be forced to acknowledge the inde>
pendence of some part of the disaSected region, and that all
the Slave States north of such part wUl then say: "The Union
for which we have struggled being already gone, we now '
choose to go with the Southern section." To deprive them of
this hope eubetaDtially ends the Rel>ellion, and the initiation of
emancipation completely deprives them of it as to all the States
initiating it. The point is not ^t a& the States tolerating
fltavery would very soon, if at all, initiate emancipation, but
that, while the offer is equally made to all, the more Northern
shall, by such initiation, make it certain to the more Southern
that ID no event will the former ever joii^ the latter in their
proposed confederacy. I say " initiation," because, in my judg-
ment, gradual, and not sudden eDiancipation, is better for all.
In the mere financial or pecuniary view, any member of Con*
greas, with the cenBUB-tablea and treasury reports before him,
can readily see for himself how very soon the current expendi-
tures of this war would purchase, at iair valuation, all the slaves
in any named State. Such a proposition on the part of the
General Government sets up no claim of a right by Federal
authority to interfere with slavery withm State limits, referring,
as it does, the absolute control of the subject in each case to
the State and its people immediately interested. It is proposed
as a matter of perfectly free choice with them.
In the annual message last December I thought fit to say :
"The Union must be preserved; and hence all indispensable
means must be employed." I said this not hastily but deliber-
ately. War has been made, and oontinuee to be an indis-
pensable means to this end. A practical reacknowledgment of
the national authority would render the war unnecessary, and
it would at once cease. If, however, resistance continues, the
war must also continue, and it is impossible to foresee all the
incidents which may attend and all the ruia which may follow
it Such as may seem indispensable, or may obviously promise
great efficiency toward ending the struggle, must and will come.
ovGoO'^lc
159
I hope it
jiary con-
the States
itionB and
resolution
I practical
soon lead
■ great re-
ly beg the
ov Google
LIFE AllD TIMES OF
CHAPTER VII.
i86a— WAR OF THE REBELLION— CONGRESS IN THE WINTER
OF 1861 AND THE SPRING OF 186a— PROPOSITION TO '
THE BORDER SLAVE-STATES— THE CONFISCATION
ACT — EMANCIPATION IN THE DISTRICT — A GRAND
MORAL PICTURE.
THIS sUrtling proposition from the President wns
viirioualy received throughout the country and
in Congress. The border Skve-State "conserva-
tives " were opposed to it ; the Democrats, who were
mainly pro-slavery, were opposed to it, except those
of them who had become thoroughly identified with
the war party ; and the Abolitionists of the straitest
sect were opposed to it. But ninny Abolitionists,
like Hornce Greeley, and the great mass of the loyal
people looked upon it kindly, and both at home and
abroad it was viewed as a magnanimous proposition
from the President, who yet held to his original de-
sire to preserve the Union without interfering with
slavery in the States, and who io view of the prob-
able necessities of the future, now hoped to induce
the States most concerned to institute a policy which
would lead to the highest possible advantage to them
under the uncertflin circumstances, and to which the
Free States might be inclined to give their assent.
There was the usual false, foolish, and immoral talk
' in the newspapers and among politicians about the
ovGoO'^lc
ABBAHAU LINGOLH. 161
whole qaestion of slavery being a thing concerning
nobody but slaveholders, but the States having
slavery, and the only thing for which the President
received any praise was the fact of his leaving the
matter with them to choose or reject as they saw fit.
Still the general opinion in the border Slave States
was that the President had made a wrong step, that
when the Slave States wanted Congress to aid them
in such an enterprise, they could speak for them-
selves. There was also the sentiment that this grad-
ual emancipation message was a feeler and educator,
that it was designed to prepare the country gradually
for the inevitable fate of the " institution ;" that the
message declared substantially: **Tbis is your last
chaace ; I wish to be fair with you, to do the best I
can for yon; I can not turn aside the current of
events ; I prefer to hold to my ori^nal policy ; I still
hope the way may be wide, and clear, and satisfac-
tory ; but what is not regarded as indispensable to-
day may become indispensable to-morrow j uncom-
pensated emancipation, immediate and general eman-
cipation, may become a necessity for the perpetuation
of the tTnion."
A few of t^e Republicans in Congress, notably
John Hickman and Thaddeus Stevens, then both in
the House from Pennsylvania, assailed this message
with considerable severity, treating it as beneath the
dignity and ability of a full-grown man at such an
important crisis in the affairs of the Nation.
On the lltii of March, after some discussion, the
House passed the President's resolution by a vote of
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LIFE AND TIMES OF
ity-nine yeas against thirty-one nays. On the
b the resolution as passed in the Home wae taken
in the Senate, and seven days afterwards adopted
thirty-two against ten votes. This joint resolution
1 then signed by Mr. Lincoln on the 10th of April.
conrse, this whole matter fell as a dead letter, as
e of the border Slave States took substantially
note of it. None of them desired to ^re up
ery on any terms.
Mr. Lincoln was deeply in earnest about the mat-
however, and did what he coidd to indnce the-
ler States to take some favorable steps in response
the act of Congress. While the resolution wa»
er consideration, about the 10th of March, he in-
id the torder Slave-State Congressmen to meet him
he White House for a frank conversation teaching
meaning and design of his compensation message,
le of these men attended the meeting, and the
sident answered fuUy the many questions put to
.; but nothing came of this well-meant efiEbrt.
ly in April a committee was appointed in tlie
ise to report some plan for bringing about co-
ration in the border Slave States in the proposi-
I of the President. And again, by invitation,
;t of the Congressmen from those States met at
Executive Mansion on the 12th of July when Mr.
coin read to them this address : —
'' Gentleueit, — After the adjoarnmeDt of CongresB,
near, I shall have no opportunity of seeing yoa for
!ral months. Believing that you of the border States
1 more power fiir good than any other eqoal number
ovGoO'^lc
>i6^::iiS?^Sy^.
ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 163
of members, I feel it n duty which I can oot jasti&abl/
waive, to make this appeal to 70a.
" I intend do reproach or complaint when I assure you
that, ID my opinion, if yon all had voted for the resolution
Id the Gradual EmaocipatioD Message of last March, the
war would now be substantially ended. And the plan
therein proposed is yet one of the most potent and swift
means of ending it. Let the Stat«8 which are in rebellioB
see definitely and certainly that in no event will the States
you represent ever join their proposed Confederacy, and
they can not much longer maintain the contest. But yoo
can not divest them of their hope to ultimately have yoa
with them ao long as you show a determination to per-
petuate the institution within yoor own States. Beat them
at elections, as you have overwhelmingly done, and, nothing
daunted, they still claim you as their own. You and I
know what the lever of their power is. Break that lever
before their fiicea, and they can shake you no more forever.
" Most of you have treated me with kindness and con-
sideration, and I trust you will not now think I improp-
erly touch what ia exclusively your own, when for the
sake of the whole country, I ask, 'Can you, for your
States, do better than to take the course I urge?* Die-
carding pmuHHo and maxims adapted to mora manageable
times, and looking only to the unprecedentedly stern facts
of our case, can you do better in any possible event? You
prefer that the Constitutional relations of the States
to the Nation shall be practically restored without dis-
turbance of the institution ; and, if this were done, my
whole duty in this respect, under the Constitution and my
oath of office, would he performed. But it is not done,
and we are trying to accomplish it by war. The incidents
of ^e war can not be avoided. If the war cooUnues
long, B8 it must, if the object be not sooner attained, the
institntion in your States will be extinguished by mere fric-
ti(m and abrasion — ^by the mere incidents of the war. It
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164 LIFE AND TIMES OF
vill be gone, and jou will have Dotbing valoable in lien of it.
Much of its value is gone already. How much better for
you and for yonr people to take the step which at once
shortens the war and eecarea substantial compensation for
that which is sure to be wholly lost in any other event I
How much better to thus save the money which else we
sink forever in the war ! How much better to do it while
we can, lest the war erelong render us pecuniarily unable
to do it 1 How much better for you as seller, and the
Nation as buyer, to sell out and buy out that without
which the war could never have been, than to sink both
the thing to be sold ahd the price of it in cutting each
other's throats!
" I do not speak of emancipation at once, but o( a de-
cmon at once to emancipate gradually. Room in South
America for colonization can be obtained cheaply and in
abundance, and when numbers shall be large euough to be
company and encouragement for one another, the freed
people will not be so reluctant to go.
" I am pressed with a difficulty not yet mentioned, one
which threatens division among those who, united, are
none too strong. An instance of it is known to you.
General Hunter is an honest man. He was, and I hope
still ie, my friend. I valued him none the less for his
agreeing with me in the general wish that all men every-
where could be freed. He proclaimed all men free within
certain States, and I repudiated the proclamation. He ex-
pected more good and less harm from the measure than I
could believe would follow. Yet, in repudiating it, I gave
dissatisfaction, if not offense, to many whose support the
country can not afford to lose. And this is not the end
of it. The pressure in this direction is still upon me,
and is increasing. By conceding what I now ask you can
relieve me, and, much more, can relieve the country in
this important point.
"Upon these considerations I have again begged your
ovGoO'^lc
B'JIiiSM.-v' T-
ABRAHAM UNCOLN. 165
attention to the message of March last. Before leaving
the Capitol, consider and discuss it among yourselves. You
are patriots aod statesmen, and as such I pray yoa consider
this proposition; and at the least commend it to the con-
sideration of your States and people. As yon would per-
petuate popular government for the best people in the
world, I beseech you that you do in nowise omit this.
Our common country is in great peril, demanding the
loftiest views and boldest action to bring a speedy relief.
Once relieved, its form of government is saved to the
world, its beloved history and cherished memories are
vindicated, and its happy future fully assured and rendered
inconceivably grand. To you, more than to any others,
the privilege ia ^ven to assure that happiness and swell
that gisndeur, and to link your own names therewith
forever."
To this Address two written replies were made,
the minority mainly agreeing with the President, and
the majority, while taking quite dissimilar views, sug-
gested that when Cot^ess made certain provisions
as to the pecuaiary aid proposed, the States con-
cerned might consider the uncalled-for proposition.
Horace Maynard, of Tennessee, and J. B. Henderson,
of Missouri, made separate reports, folly conciuTing
with the views of Mr. Lincoln.
A sweeping con0scation act was passed at this
session, and approved by the President. The act
had an emancipation feature, and provided for the
organization and employment of the freed slaves of
rebels, or other persons of African descent, as the
President might deem best for the public good. A
clause of the act also authorized the President to
issue a proclamation of pardon and amnesty, on such
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166 LIFE AND TIHE8 OF
conditioiiB as he deemed advisable to persons engaged
in the rebellion against the National authority.
In furthering the purposes of this important
measure, the President issued this proclamation a few
days after the adjournment of Congress : —
"In parsuaace of the sixth eeotion of th« Act of Con-
gress, entitled, 'An Act to suppress insurrectioD, to panish
treason and rebellion, to seize and confiscate the property
of rebels, aod for other purposes,' approved Jut^ 17, 1862,
and which Act, and the joint resolution explanatory thereof,
are herewith published, I, Abraham Lincoln, President of
the United States, do hereby proclaim to aud warn all persons
within the contemplation of said sixth section to cease par-
ticipating iu, aiding, countenancing, or abetting the exist-
ing Bebellion, or any rebellion, against the Government
of the United States, and to return to their proper alle-
giaucfl to the United StateSi on pain of the forfeitures and
seizures as within and by said sixth section provided.
"In testimony whereof, I have hereunto set my hand
and caused the seal of the United States to he affixed,
"Done at the City of Washington, this twenty-fifth
day of July, in the year of onr Lord one thousand
eight hundred and sixty-two, and of the Inde-
pendence of the. United States the eighty-seventh.
" By the President : Abbahah Lincoln.
"WiLijAM H. Sbwabd, Secretary of State."
Of more importance, however, than this act for-
ever freeing the slaves of rebels actually engaged in
war apon the United States, was the measure pro-
viding for the total abolition of slavery in the District
of Columbia. Immediately after the assembling of
Congress Henry Wilson, of Massachusetts, introduced
in the Senate a resolution referring to the Committee
ovGoO'^lc
ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 167
on the IMstrict of Colnmbia certain matters pertain-
JDg to the slaves, among which was one inquiring into
the expediency of Abolishing slavery in the District.
And a few days afterwards, December 16, 1861, he
introduced a bill for the immediate abolition of all
the slaves in the District.
This bill, as Bnally passed March 16, 1862, pro-
vided that all slaves in the District be forever free
from that date, liable only as other persons to lose
their freedom on account of the commission of crime ;
that a commission be appointed to hear the facts and
declare upon the remaneration of loyal masters, a
million of dollars being appropriated for that purpose,
and three hundred dollars fixed as the average price
to be allowed for each slave ; that no allowance be
made for those brought into the District after the
passage of the act; that no witness should be ex-,
eluded on account of color; that no secret removal
of slaves from the District should be allowed; that
papers from the Government should be given to each,
indicating his manumission; that one hundred thou-
sand dollars should be used for the purpose of col-
onizing these freed slaves, if they chose to leave the
country ; and, finally, a supplemental clause providing
that all slaves brought into the District at any time,
and employed or hired there, should also be free.
After a long and free discussion, 'such as had
never before occurred in the Congress of the United
States on the subject of slavery, on the 3d of April,
by a vote of twenty-nine to fourteen, the bill passed
in the Senate. After a brief and cutting de^te in
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168 LIFE AND TIMES OF
the Honse the bill was concurred in on the 11th,
by that branch, in a vote of ninety-two to thirty-
eight, and approved by the President on the 16lh of
April, 1862.
The Constitution provides that Congress shall have
the exclusive right to legislate for the District, and
does not limit its scope or power. And yet, in the
discussions on this measure, men, denominated " states-
men," loudly proclaimed that Congress had no power
to pass such, an act, or legislate at all on the eman-
cipation of the slaves in the District. Although this
was not an unheard-of freak in the handling of this
maddening theme, the grounds mainly advanced since
1836 by the opponents of emancipation had been
unjust interference with an established domestic insti-
tution, injustice to the surrounding Slave States, and
matters of policy. Although for thirty years Con-
gress had been almost incessantly memorialized by
"fiinatioal" and philanthropic people to remove
slavery from the seat of Government, no very decided
advance in that direction had been made, and up to
the very day on which the chains were broken from
these three thousand blacks no political party could
have succeeded at the polls, which was not believed
to be safe and sound as to non-interference with
slavery in the District of Columbia. This was one
of the standing tests, both of men and parties. It
had always been held by Slave States and the sup-
porters of shivery, thnt the States, in the manner
provided by their constitutions, had sole power, ia
their boundaries, to legislate for the destruction of
ovGoO'^lc
ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 169
slavery ; and it never could have been held with the
least grain of reason that CoingresB, having sole legis-
lative power in the District, could not do as it pleased
with its affairs. Aod even now, the folly of such a
position was too plain to attract much attention.
James A. Bayard, one of the leading opponents of
the measure, candidly said on the point, in the fiuie
of his associates : — ■
" I concede, without the slighteat reservation, that the
authority of the General Government over the Diatrict of
Columbia is precisely the same as the authority of a State
' over its territory ; that no Constitational objection can
arise to the action of Congress in abolishing slavery in
this District, other than those that could be made within
the boundaries of a State under similar provisions of a
State constitution."
The cause of slavery had been greatly strength-
ened and benefited by the existence of the " institu-
tion" in the District of Columbia. So fax as the
District was concerned, slavery was a national insti-
tution, all the States supporting it equally, and all
tolerating alike the very bard slave code of Maryland
which applied to it. While it was well known, the
world over, that the North had submitted to the
continuance of slavery in the District as a peace-
offering, as a political necessity ; nevertheless, the
institution acquired thereby an air of respectability
it could not have had otherwise. The South was
well aware of this fact, and it never entertained any
compunctions on account of the disgust, mortification,
and suffering of the North. It not only demanded
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170 LIFE ASD TIHE8 OF
tile continuance and support of slaverj in the Dis-
trict, but also imperiously forbade any discussion of
the subject, or even the expression of a wish or a
aentiment respecting it. It was long the only sub-
ject forbidden in the Halls of Congress. The seal
of silence and submission, at least, was placed upon
every month. No party could break this seal, aad
the individual who was bold enough to do so was
accursed forever.
The fiery balls thrown at Fort Sumter had cut
the Gordian knot, and the wills and lips of men went
loose; the obligations of the past were gone; the
crack of the first rebel gun announced the inevitable
doom of slavery. Freedom in the District of Colum-
bia was the first substantial fruit of secession; it
was the greatest moral achievement of the American
Congress, and the names of those who accomplished
it will live in the history of human progress when
the heroes of many a battle-field shall be forgotten
among men.
At no time had slavery been so offensive in the
District, and the need for some action to correct it,
been so imperative, perhaps, as since the inauguration
of Mr. Lincoln. The Republican Administration at
the outset seemed to live in constant fear of doing
Bomething about slavery which would belie its pre-
tensions and promises. To fight the Rebellion and
not touch slavery was its ambition; and for a time
these two tasks were equally difficult. While Mr.
Lincoln believed slavery to be morally and socially
wrong when he entered on the Presidency, there is
ovGoO'^lc
ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 171
no evidence tbat he had any desire to become a martyr
in behalf of negro freedom and elevation. All this
was a matter of growth with him. It came with the
derelopment of events. Nothing more clearly dem-
onstrates this fact than the ill-treatment and sufieiing
of the negroes in the District for the year preceding
their emancipation* and that, in some sense, by hU
sanction.
Ward Hi Lamon, one of Mr. Lincoln's Illinois
followers, who had come to Washington to help him,
to grow fat under his favors, was made Marshal of the
Difltrict Lamon was of pro-slavery origin and pre-
dilections, and he made it one of his chief duties to
gather up negroes, bond and free, and confine them,
Hs rnnaway slaves, in the old Washington jail. The
iniquity of his business, as well as the revolting con-
dition of the prison, after a time became known, and
so loud was the cry against the whole thing that the
President took upon himself the responsibility, in
advance of the emancipation legislation of Congress,
to order the Marshal to empty the jail, and turn his
attention to more important things than arresting and
holding these doubtful slaves of rebel masters.
Some few things now remained to be done to
start these freed people with the least possible
degree of fairness in the race of life. Only a week
or two after the passage of the Emancipation Bill,
James W. Grimes, of Iowa, introduced in the
Senate a bill to |H:ovide for the education of colored
children in Washington. The bill was amended, and
passed in both Houses, receiving the President's
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172 UFG AND TIMES OF
approval on the 21at of May, 1862. Later in the
snme session another bill, snpplemeatary, waa passed,
and became a law. In the spring of 1863 the educar
tional interests of the freed district negroes were
pushed farther on, and finally, in the snmmer of
1864, provisions were made for their having an eqnal
share of all the privileges afforded by law to the
white children of the district.
Daring this session a bill was introdnced, and,
after a thorough discussion and very material amend-
ments, was passed in both Houses, and signed by the
President on the 19th of June, 1862, forbidding
slavery or involuntary servitude in all territory of
the United States then existing, or that might in
the future be acquired. This bill waa viri;ually re-
enacting the Ordinance of 1787, and it placed slavery
in the Nation where Mr. Lincoln and his political
associates desired it to be, and beyond which, it is
believed, as has been fully shown in preceding
volumes of this work, the authors of the Ordinance
of 1787 and the framers of the Constitution never
designed it to go, the States where it then was, and
where they believed and hoped it would in time die
out. Like every other step in this slavery legislar
tion the border State Congressmen and their Demo-
cratic friends opposed this bill with great violence
and all their ingenuity. But it was a vain struggle.
In the passage of this bill the new dogma that Con-
gress had no authority to legislate about slavery in
the Territories was set aside forever, and the
Administration party laid claim to another step
:b,GoO'^lc
ABRAHAM LIKOOLir. 173
toward retanuDg to the primitiTe Btandards of the
Government.
One other important matter relating to slavery
came ap during this session. This was the capture
and return of fugitive slaves by the army. From
the outset this had been a disagreeable and difficult
matter, and there was exhibited a very decided dis-
position at Washington, and among soldiers,' to avoid
any responsibility. The Administration and the Re-
publican party leaders were anxious to Uve up to
their pretensions and promises as to slavery^ and it
was strongly hoped that the thing which everybody
dreaded to touch would some way take care of
itself; and so little was the true nature of the case
understood that it was generally believed the only
thing required was to let slavery alone and it would
take care of itself. This great mistake was too soon
painfully apparent; and every responsible officer
began to* deal with a subject that would not be let
alone, as suited his own inclination. There was no
uniformity, and the authorities at Washington seemed
anxious to get on without a policy. General Butler
at Fortress Monroe furnished the first example of a
fearless disposition to meet the case with a reason-
able and just plan. Three slaves came to him who
were about to be sent by their rebel master to work
in the trenches in South Carolina. He thereupon set
them to work in his own camp. With characteristic
rebel folly and inconsistency an agent applied for the
release of these slaves, snying : ** Do you mean to set
aside your Constitutional obligations ?"
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174 UFE AND TIMES OP
To this stupendous " cheek " the General replied r
" Virginia passed an ordinanoe of secession, and
claims to be a foreign country. I am under no Cou-
stttntional obligations to a foreign conntry."
" You say we can not secede, and so yon can not
consistently retain them," said this fellow.
To this the ever-ready Ben replied : " Tou con-
tend yon have seceded, and you can not consistently
claim them. Tou are using negroes on your bat-
teries. I shall detain them as contraband of war."
But General Butler was not at ease on the sob-
ject. Scores of these slaves, whose masters had left
their homes to engage in the war against the Govern-
ment, flocked to his camp. The Administration had
no "contraband" policy. His letters to General
Scott, and then to Secretary Cameron, famished the
basis of a policy which did for a time apparently
satisfy the demands of the case. But the Secretary's-
plan involved the ultimate necessity of an army of
registration clerks, and was never pat into general
practice.
Buell, Hooker, MoClellan, Patterson, Mansfield^
Halleck, and others took a course in dealing with
the fugitives which best subserved the interests of
the rebel masters ; while Doubleday, Hanter, Fre-
mont, Wool, Curtis, McDowell, and others pursued a
more humane course, and, wisely looking npon the
negro as an element of strength on the side of the
Rebellion, treated him in that light. But there was
a vast amount of ill-feeling about the matter in the
army. The sentiment agtunst the negro's caixying:
ovGoO'^lc
ABRAHAM UNOOUT. 17&
a musket was for a time vejj' decided, and Bome
regiments wonld not tolerate a negro in their camps,
let alooe in their ranks. Anything that he could do,^
but be a slave, seemed to be viewed as making him
equal to the white man. And the lower a Northern
soldier went in the scale of Christian refinement and
moral and intellectual culture, the deeper was his
dread and hatred of the negro. This feeling to some
extent extended to the whole white race on the con-
tinent, and is yet little less active than it was at
that or any other period. Those termed " laboring
men," and the lowest of them, were, however, the
most noisy and despotic about the least sign of favor
toward the colored man. To place him in labor
competition was the highest crime, and implied a
conspiracy against the business or life of the capital-
ist, maanfacturer, or contractor who was bold enough
to try the experiment.
With this class of men, moral and intellectual
qualities were not taken into account in estimating-
equality or superiority. The former condition of
serritade, and the odor and color of the skin, were
the only bases of comparison. Where such principles
and snch multifarious practices controlled men in and
out of the army, it became the authorities of the-
Qovemment to move with caution.
Congress recognized the difficulties nnder which
the Administration and army labored, and exhibited
some disposition, in the special session of the summer
of 1861, to provide a remedy. But many of the
stoutest-hearted Republicans showed great timidity
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176 LIFE AND TIMES OF
in approaching the subject, and nothing was done.
By the meeting of the next regular session a differ-
ent feeling was apparent, and bills were at once
before each House providing that *'all officers or
persons in the military or naval service of the United
States are prohibited from employing any of the
forces under their respective commands for the pur-
pose of returning fugitives from service or labor, who
may have escaped from any persons to whom such
service or labor is claimed to be due, and any of&cer
who shall be found guilty by a conrt-martial of
violating this article, shall be dismissed from the
service."
The border State members and titeir Democratic
friends put forth all their ingenuity to defeat this
' bill, but to little effect. Still it was shorn of all its
original and unnecessarily strong features, and only
the main point retained. An effort was made to ex-
clude Delaware, Maryland, Kentucky, and Missouri
from the operations of the bill, but even this was
not succeasful. The vote on the bill in the House
stood eighty-three to forty-two ; and in the Senate
twenty-nine to nine. On the 13th of March, 1862,
the act became a law by the approval of the Presi-
dent. Thus a very troublesome matter was disposed
of, and another mortal stab inflicted upon the old
enemy of the Union.
Little more was left for Congresa to do on this
momentous question. The next blow was to come
from the Administration. The progress of events
was fast preparing the country for it.
:b,GoO'^lc
ABRAHAM UHCOLN.
CHAPTER VIII.
1S63 — WAR OF THE REBELLION — THE TRENT CASE —
FOREIGN AFFAIRS — THE HAND OF. OLD ENGLAND-
COURSE OF THE "RULING CLASS" — THE TRIPLE
ALLIANCE — AMERICA AND THE MONROE DOCTRINE
TO BE CRUSHED— MAXIMILIAN— TIME, THE AVENGER.
ON the 8th of November, 1861, Captain Charles
Wilkes, commander of the United States war-
steamer San Jacinto, stopped the Biitish merchant-
vessel Trent, between Havana and St. Thomas, and
forcibly took from her James M. Mason and John
Slidell, with their two secretuies. These men, viGx
what signs of authority they could get from Jefferson
Davis, were on their way to England and France to
represent the "Southern Confederacy," and this fact
was weU known to the British consul at Havana,
and the cnptain of the ^ent and her British pas-
sengers, who were all warm in the interest of the
Bebellion. A month before, indeed, these men had
been carried oat of Charleston Harbor by the I^e<h
data, a British blockade-runner.
Wilkes proceeded to New York, from whence the
prisoners were conveyed to Fort Warren, in Boston
Harbor. This affnir went into diplomatic history as
the "Trent Case," and for a time creiited a great
deal of excitement and bluster on both sides of the
12-Q
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178 LIFE AND TIMES OF
Atlantic. In England there wob a strong desire that
it should be made the cause of immediate war with
tiie United States, and no effort was spared to goad
the Ministry to assume a hostile attitude. In the
South it was regarded as an " especial provideDce "
in favor of the Rebellion, to be followed by foreign
rec<^nitioD, coalition, and the speedy degradatioD of
the United States.
Captain Wilkes had not been instructed to take
this step, and hence the Administration was not
obliged to support him in it. The policy of the
United States had always been unfavorable to search-
- ing the vessels of friendly neutral powers, and espe-
cially to the old, arrogant British oltum to the right
of search and impressment And this very thing^
had mainly led President Madison to declare war
agiiinst England in 1812. On these two grounds the
Administration oould readily rest the defense of the-
oourse it determined to take in Qx\b unfortunate case.
From the outset Mr. Lincoln regretted 'the action
of Wilkes, not thinking it either just or politic. It
was not the time to quarrel with England ; and th&
way to adjust the difficulty carried with it, at least,
the appearance of humiliation. The Cabinet was not-
unanimous on the course to he pursued, and at any
rate one member of it, the Secretary of the Navy,
never did depart from the strong position he first
took, with the minority of the people, in support of
the conduct of Captain Wilkes. Mr. Welles, in a
letter to Wilkes, on the 30th of November, publicly
thanked him for his patriotic act. But this only
ovGoo'^lc
ABBAHA.M UNOOLN. 179
ehowed that, unreetraiQed by calmer and more politio
heads, the Secretary of the Navy would hardly have
been a very safe man in times of great emergency.
The Hoase of Representatives also passed a vote of
thanks, and asked the President to provide a gold
medal for Captain Wilkes; bat the calmer Senate
did Dot agree to this measure. While the action of
the House represented the heat and sentiment of the
majority of the people of the couatry^ it also exhibited
the valae of the Senate and Executive as a check on
its temper and extravagance at an important crisis.
This event was not needed to show this country
ihe secret unfriendliness of England, and its imper-
ishable hatred for this Republic and its people; nor
was such an incentive necessary here to remind us
of oar old, ineradicable grudges, and disposition to
fire up on the least imaginary or real provocation on
ike part of England. Great Britain never had a
better opportunity to do what her leading politicinns
and aristocratic classes have doubtlessly always de-
sired, to destroy this Government, or put it in the
way to destmction ; nor was this country ever in a
worse condition to engage in a fierce life^truggle
with her old foe. This was all very well known in
England, and her failure to take full advantage of her
opportunity entitles her to more credit, perhaps, than
ihe American people were ever disposed to give her,
whatever may have been her motives.
At the outset England and France had made haste
to let this Government, with which they held the
most friendly diplomatic relaUons, know that they
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180 LIFE AND TIMES OF
would SO far take note of its affairs as to recognize
the belligerent rights of the rebels — rights which
they did not possess — and thns do what they could
to weaken its power. When Captain Wilkes com-
mitted his blunder, the ruling "class" in England
declared for war, and said the first thing should be
independence to Qie Soath. The downfall of the
Bepublic woatd follow.
The Administration took the course that wisdom
and prudence dictated, and was quite as selfish in
doing so as England was in acceptii^ What was
done. Charles Francis Adams, the American Min-
ister at the London Court, was at once notified by
Mr. Seward of the course the Administration would
take when the time came ; and Mr. Adams prepared
himself to perform his part of the work to the utmost
satisfuction of his chief, whom he deemed not only
the model statesman of the age, but also the intel-
lectual and executive force of a Cabinet, where Mr.
Lincoln was nothing more than a mere figure-head.
England was not long in presenting the occasion for
action, which Mr. Seward and the President knew
must come. And the demand was what they ex-
pected, at least, reparation and apology. Mr. Seward
set about the work at once, and, whether it was a
duty or a necessity, the task was a difficult one. The
whole matter, so far as this Government was con-
cerned, rested upon the fact that it was in no con-
dition to go to war with England, and the way out
of this difficulty was in the simple rejection of the
act of Captain Wilkes, the release of the four rebels.
ovGoO'^lc
ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 181
and the reassertion of the principle for which the
(Joremment had stood out in its first qaarter of a
century against the British. But Mr. Seward had a
double task to perform. To satisfy his impulsive coun-
trymen was of less importance than to appease Eng-
land's outraged honor, yet it was necessary. Hence,
it was incumbent on him to take a much wider scope
in his presentation of the case to the British Min-
istry than was implied in the brief points suggested
by the circumstances of the country at the time.
Mr. Seward's argument was able and ingenious, and
while it tai^ht England that there were two sides
to the question, and much in it unfavorable to her, it
did something in correcting the hasty judgment of
the people at home, and showing them that the act
of Captain Wilkes, beyond being not merely impolitic,
was also not strictly just toward a neutral power;
and, especially, was inconsistent with the former
claims of this Qovemment.
England accepted the points in the argument,
which she considered particularly satisfactory to her
wounded pride, the rebels were released 'and went on
their way, and the two nations continued their former
hypocritical friendship.
The United States Government had only done
rig^t in the case, and so the world has judged ; bub
the rebels cried that she had been led to the lowest
depths of ignominious humiliation to avoid war with
England. This was to be expected, as they were
the only sufferers by the " Trent Case." With this
"special providence " went down their hope in
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182 LIFE AND TIMES OP
Bagland. The ways of Providence were as treach-
erous as the allurements of Great Britain. And even
the virulent '* London Times " now uttered these
sentiments >—
"So we do siDcerely hope that our countrymen will
not give these fellows anything in the shape of ao ovation.
The civility that is due to a foe in distress is all that they
aan olaim. We have returned them good for evil, and,
sooth to say, we should he exceedingly sorry that they
should ever be in a situation to choose what return they
will make for the good we have now done them. They are
here for their own interest, in order, if possible, to drag us
into their own quarrel, and, but for the unpleasant contin-
geacies of a prison, rather disappointed, perhaps, that their
detention has not provokedanew war. When they stepped
on board the Trent they did not trouble themselves with
the thought of the mischief they might be doing aa un-
offending neutral ; and if now, by any less perilous device,
they could eotaogle us in the war, no doubt they would be
only too happy. We trust there is no chance of their doing
this; for,' impartial as the British public is in the matter, it
certainly has no prejudice in favor of slavery, which, if
anything, these gentlemen represent. What they and their
secretaries are.to do here passes our conjecture. They are,
personally, nothing to us. They must not suppose, because
we have gone to the very verge of a great war to rescue
them, that therefore they are precious in our eyes. We
should have done just as much to rescue two of their own
negroes; and, had that been the object of the rescue, the
swarthy Fompey and Ciesar would have had just the same
right to triumphal arches and municipal addresses aa
Messrs. Mason and Slidell. So, please, British public, let's
have none of these things. Let the commissioners come up
quietly to town, and have their say with anybody who may
have time to listen to them. For our part, we can not see
ovGoO'^lc
ABSA^HAH LmOOLNi 183
hov anything they have to tell caa turn the scale of British
duty and deliberation.
" There have been so many cases of peoples and na-
tions establishing an aotoal independence, and compelling
the recognition of the world, that all we have to do is
what we have done before, up to the very last year. This
is now a simple matter of precedent. Our statesmen and
lawyers know quite Jas much on the subject as Messrs.
Mason and Slidell, and are in no need of their information
or advice."
Besides the plain people, there were here and
there men of public note and intellectual worth in
England who opposed the idea of war with the
United States ; and especially must it be remem-
bered that the Queen and Prince Consort earnestly
desired a peaceful ending of the "Trent Case." To
the influence of this Christian Prince who recognized
the kinship of race more than eTerything else, perhaps,
may be traced the repression of the evil tendencies
of " Lord " Palmerston's ministry. The " privileged
class," starting with its old grudge against this
country, hoped the Rebellion would end in the down-
fall of Free America; and to a great extent the
"middle class" was readOy brought into this view.
The great cultivator of this sentiment was a licentious
public press, at the head of which stood the utterly
vicious and unprincipled " London Times."
In the last days of Mr. Buchanan's Administra-
tion this paper began its work in the usual way
where a mean purpose is in view, by comparisons
favorable to the North ; and gradually worked out
the case in hand, landing the great mass of its
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LIFE AND TIMES OF
ith the South, where their fre»-trade in-
re supposed to be. ' It said : —
Jouthem States have sinned more than the
They have exhibited a passionate effrontery^
with the sufferance of slavery, but determioed
ision. They refuse to have any man for Presi-
he regards a black servant and a black port-
chattels of the same category and description,
with all its advantages, belongs to the States of
The North is for freedom, the South for the
□d pioe-fagot. Free and democratic communi-
applied themselves to the honorable office of
aves to be consumed on the free and democralio
of the South ; thus replacing the African trade
Dal one of equal atrocity. The South has be-
ared of her shame."
declaration of South Carolina it wrote : —
ng can be more frivolous than the grounds of
sto ; its statements are utter falsehoods. With-
thout justice, without delay, South Carolina is
e path that leads to the downfoll of nations
misery of families. The hollowness of her
:en beneath all the pomp of her labored de-
Charleston, without trade, is an animal under
id receiver. Trade is her very breath."
the Avenger, is doing justice between the
Mopte and ourselves. With what witlingness
not see their sonorous Fourth of July rhetoric
the waters of oblivion I They have fallen to
we have shown no joy at secession ; we have
incouragement to the South ; we have turned
the bait of free trade, and have strengthened
r sympathy and advice. The secession of South
I to them what the secession of Lancashire
ovGoO'^lc
ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 185
would be to Ds; it is treason and should be put down.
But the North is full of sophists, rhetoricians, logicians,
aud lawers; it has not a man of action. . . . The
Udiou seems to be destined to fall without a struggle,
without a lament, without an epitaph."
" The force of political cohesion will probably be too
strong even for the ambition and sectional hatred of the
Charleston demagogues. Though things look so promio-
ing for them, it is evident that the seoession leaders and
their too-willing followers are in the beginning of terrible
disasters. Southern credit does sot stand high either in
the Union or in the world. Capital flies from a land
ruled hj fanatical demagogues."
" It will not be our feult, if the inopportune le^sla-
tnre of the North, combined with the reciprocity of wants
between ourselves and the South, should bring about a
considerable modification of our relations with America.
The tendencies of trade are inexorable. It may be that
the Southern population will now become our best cus-
tomers. The Free States will long repent an act (Morrill
Tariff) which brings needless discredit on the intrinsic
merits of their cause."
" The Union is effectually divided into two rival con-
federacies. The Southern is tainted by slavery, filibuster-
ing, and called into existence, it would seem, by a course
of deliberate and deep-laid treason on the part of high
officials at Washington. In the Northern, the principles
avowed are such as to command the sympathies of free
and enlightened people. But mankind will not ultimately
judge by sympathies and antipathies ; they will be greatly
swayed by their own interests."
" In the South we find the most convincing proofs of
forethought and deliberation. . . . Reunion can never
be expected. Men do not descend to such depths of
treachery and in&my unless they are about to take a step
which they believe to be irrevocable.
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186 LIFE AND TIMES OP
" While the North it passing a probibitoiy tariff, and
speculating on balancing the loss of the cotton regions by
annexing Canada, the Confederates are on their good
behavior. They are free-tradere. The coasting trade
from Charleston to Galveston is thrown open to the
British flag."
So It went OQ in a regular and easy grade until
it axid the great bulk of the English people among
ihftnufactarers, traders, and the aristocracy were
ranged on the side of the Rebellion. The rest of
Europe was largely guided by the opinions of Eng-
land, and thus it turned ont that the loyal North had
to fight alone the great battle of freedom, when it
had every reason to feel that England would have
given her moral support. Even before Mr. Adams,
the representative Of tie new Administration, ar-
rived in London, the Ministry had acknowledged the
belligerent rights of the seceding States, and on the
13th of May, 1861, England issued a neutrality proc-
lamation. France and Spain soon after followed in
the same unfriendly and undiplomatic, vicious, and
eiToneous proceeding. The Government and people
of the United States were greatly and justly in-
censed by this action ; and when the representa-
tives of these meddlesome, unfriendly, foreign powers
notified Mr. Seward that they had special messages
from their governments to read to him, he refused to
hear them until he should first have an opportunity
to read them privately ; and, this privilege granted, he
still declined to hear them or hold any communica-
tions on the subject with the Ministers.
ovGoO'^lc
ABRAHAM UMCOLN. 187
Along abont this time, and later, England also
showed farther signs of intermeddling, in discussing
the propriety of intervention in the affairs of this
country between what she termed the " belligerents,"
and in listening to rebel agents aod the misguided
and unpatriotic leaders of the Bemocratio party.
Lyons, the British Minister at Washington, recited
in detail to his government, the speculations and de-
sires of these evil-minded men, as expressed to him,
concerning the interference of England, and gave liis
own views of the extent to which he thought the
Demooratic leaders of the North would go, at the
proper time, toward the disintegration of the Ameri-
can Republic. " Lord " Lyons was a cool, cautious,
and fair man, and possibly wished no ill to this Gov-
ernment ; but he committed the mistake of attaching
any importance to the opinions and purposes of the
Democratic politicians who were, as such, the oppo-
neots of every measure of the Administration, or of
even listening to their unstatesman-Itke schemes.
The power of these men had vanished, not soon to
return. Even then they were without followers.
The gnns of Fort Sumter had broken the party bands,
and the great mass of the Democrats had gone,
heart and main, to the support of the Qovemment in
the overthrow of the Rebellion. In his letter to the
Ministry on the 17th of November, 1861, Lyons
expresses his true sentiment, perhaps, in these
words : —
" The immediate and obvious interest of Great Britain,
as well as of the rest of Europe, is that peace and proe-
ov Google
188 LIFE A2ID TIMES OF
perity sbonld be restored to this coontry as soon as possi-
ble. The point chiefly worthy of oonaideratton appears to
be whether separation or reunion be the more likely to
affect this object."
Four things may be said to have controlled Eng-
land in reference to the War of the Rebellion in this
country : self-interest, old grudges, and hatred of the
Yankee, and her devotion to the *' divine rights " of
kingcraft. Where the just cause was and where her
sympathy should be, she freely acknowledged, at the
outset. But whatever may be set to the credit of
Bngland in many instances, it was not to her purpose
now to be controlled by honorable sympathy, the
sympathy of honorable principle. She overestimated
the strength and endurance of the South, and the
extent and force of the allies of the Rebellion at the
North, and, as she had ever done, underestimated the
almost boundless resources of the Government of the
United States ; and in her great greed for free trade,
for a restoration of her ancient monopoly of Southern
trade, she lost sight of her loud pretensions toward
and hatred of slavery.
If the United States saw fit to give a little in
the settlement of the "Trent Case," gaining thereby
more esteem, the world over, than it got censure and
ridicule from those who looked at its deeds and
purposes only with evil intent, the course of Great
Britain in dealing with the American question during
the War presented, morally, as false,)humiliating, and
pitiable a spectacle as ever marred the history of a
BO-called Christian nation.
ovGoO'^lc
ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 189
After starting out with the Tolnntarj statement
and belief that all the right, justice, and good were
on the side of the North and the Government, and
all the evil and wrong on the side of the rebels, and
having declared fully that the sympathy of all en-
lightened people shoold be with the former, the
" moral " support of the Ministry was given to the
Rebellion, and the ruling class in England turned its
attention to attempts to break down the cause of the
Union, and cheer on its enemies by hopes that never
had any foundation in its promises, while the great
masses in the mercantile and literary ranks did all
they could to falsify the triumphs and purposes of
the Q-ovemment and its loyal supporters.
Hatred for slavery, and all its recent efforts in
behfilf of American Abolitionism, and its triumphs in
freeing its own possessions of the taint of slavery,
England now forgot. This record was blotted out by
the lust of gain. Her past acts and all her preten-
sions went for nothing when weighed against cotton,
against the free trade of an improvident and lazy,
aristocratic people. Good deeds, good words, good
principles England now banished, and for them un-
wisely and unprofitably substituted a series of dark
and damning efforts to thwart the Government, for
which her friendly pretensions were at no time miti-
gated. Her manufactories were fired up in the inter-
ests of the Rebellion ; her ship-yards acquired a new
impetus from their Soutbem patronage, always bank-
rupt, by her own statement; her avaricious merchants
and bankers took new risks in behalf of a people
ov Google
190 LIFE AND TIMES OP
with poor oredit, according to t^eir own statementsr
in the best of circtuostaDces ; and blockade-runners
infested the coaat she imagined shoold belong, to her
from Cape Hatteras to the Rio Grande.
In all tiiis, if there could be one mitigating cir-
onmstance, it was in the fact that England did not,
perhaps, like the wrong side more than the right;
but, in her insatiable avarice she sacrificed all that
had been admirable in her history, and all that waa
manly and true in her treatment of a kindred nation.
The inducements she held out to the rebels were de>
lusive, and to these must be charged, to some extent,
the duration and persistence of the Rebellion, and
hence much of tiie suffering and evils of the times.
Kindredship of race and tongue will undoubtedly do
much to eradicate the deep feelings in America
against England, for the wrongs meant and the
wrongs inflicted during this critical period in the
national life, when with no detriment to her she
could have strengthened the cause of the Govern-
ment and shortened the bloody struggle. As the
Ericsson Monitor and the vast proportions of the
American navy greatly weakened the tendencies of
Britain daring the war, the conquest of the Rebellion,
vaster beyond all comparison than any she had ever
encountered, gave her a new reason to deal justly
and fairly, at least with the United States, in the
future. In tiiis wonderful war she saw her claim as
*' mistress of the seas " crumble away. And should
she be unwise enough to raise a warlike issue with
this country, the old scores of the dsvefaidders' Re-
ov Google
ABKAHAU LINCOLN. 191
bellioa would, viiQi other still unforgotten memorios,
rise up against h«r for the day of Tongeance. And
whatever may be swd of the spirit, probably millions
of Americans would be willing to undergo the hard-
ships and dangers of another war, if by it the aristo-
cratic government of England could he subverted,
and every vestige of her authority utterly destroyed
in the Western Hemisphere.
For several years before the breaking ont of the
Rebellion the Soutii had attempted, by filibustering
and negotiation, to open Hxe way for a vast extension
of slave territory in Mexico and Central America.
A favorable change of govemmentr in Mexico would
furnish the South an opportunity for a coalition in
which she could dominate, and in which she would
be able to hold her own against the aggressions of
the Free North. The Southern leaders saw in thetr
dreama a VRSt congenial empire foundefl on their
principle of Christian civilization, African slavery,
stretching around the Onlf of Mexico to South
America, and eventually embracing all the West
India Islands. But as the schemes of secession
were developed, and tliis dream of empire seemed to
be more likely to be realized, France, England, and
Spain began to consider the subject in the light of
their present and ancient claims in the same region.
.They were, indeed, little behind the Southern adven-
turers in their schemes to turn the American political
dissensions to their own benefit. Two or three years
before the close of Mr. Buchanan's Administration
Napoleon IH. began to lay his own plans for an
ovGoot^lc
192 LIFE AND TIMES OF
establishment under French aathortty in Mexico. The
wounds he had iDflicted on the emperor of Austria
he wished to palliate or heal while advanciog his own
interests, by rearing a throne in the West and placing
on it Maximilian, the brother of the Austrian king.
This he kept to himself, and aboat the time of Mr.
Lincoln's inaoguration a kind of joint protectorate for
Mexico was arranged upon by France, England, and
Spain. This was the key to the immediate recogni-
tion by these governments of the belligerent rights
of the South. The French emperor had before
favored Southern secession, and now he set about
giving the Rebellioa what encouragement his pur-
poses demanded. Secession accomplished would
break the power of the Government of the United
States, destroy its Monroe Doctrine, and make it
eiisy of control.
So far is the Federal Union was concerned this
European scheme implied and desired its dissolution.
Not, however, the complete destruction of the Ameri-
can form of government. It was said, and perhaps
believed, that the oommercial interests of England,
France, and Spain, as also other European govern-
ments, would be best subserved by dividing the
United States into two republics, and while main-
taining them as enemies to each other, render them
singly powerless in shaping or dictating the course
of foreign interlopers on the continent, and yet pre-
serve all their foreign commercial benefits. While
these European monarchies would have been willing
to divide the Western World among themselves, it
ovGoO'^lc
ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 198
by no means follows that they would have been
pleased to see a great rival monarohy ariae here. An
eaterprising, tradiDg, free republic was more desira-
ble, notwithstanding their senseless and unmanly de-
ToUon to tiUes, aristocracy, and kingty slavery and
tyranny.
Spain consented to the Mexican scheme, as she
anderstood it, mainly from ' the hope that it would
some way turn out in the restoration of her ancient
authority over that country, her weakness rendering
her an object of little concern to the groat powers.
There was in this adventure another Europenn
interest which should not be overlooked, that of the
P<^ of Rome; and the whole schedle was pushed
forward by Almonte, Mimmon, and La Bastada (the
Bomish Archbishop of Mexico), and, perhaps, other
Mexicans who were in Europe looking after their
own interests. One of Maximilian's preparatory
steps was to negotiate with the Pope for the restora-
tion to the Catholic ' Church of its old mortmain
chums in Mexico. So one way and another, through
intrigues at Paris, at London, and in the Vatican, a
monarchy was provided for. The part the people of
Mexico took in this work, if there could be such a
thing as the ''people of Mexico," was farcical in the
extreme! La Bastida's intrigues reconciled the Church
party. The earthly possessions of the Church far out^
weighed its power and disposition to establish in the
hearts and lives of th'e people an inalienable estate
of wisdom, honor, and justice.
Long before the consummation of the final steps
ov Google
194 LIFE Am) TIMEB OF
for this oQtn^^e od America, England and Spain dis-
covering the purposes of Napoleon, withdrew from the
coalition, England having, to some extent, palliated
her crime in the matter by stipnlatiag for the anp-
port or recognition of the religion of inteltigoQce and
virtue, in a country where there never had been one
nor the other.
It was now the middle of the summer of 1863
before the French army reached the City of Mexico,
and began the preparations for the first act in the
wicked drama, with the Archduke of Austria aa the
leading dupe. The illusory hopes Napoleon had
aroused in the breasts of the Southern leaders had
long been dead. They had been deceived. Alt ex-
pectations as to Europe had failed, and of this failure
Jefferson Davis, in his strangely unsound work says,
in speaking of the conduct of foreign powers in re-
fusing to treat the South as an independent power : —
"One immediBte and necessary result of their decliaii^
the responsibility af a decisioo, which must have been ad-
verse to the extravagant pretensions of the United States,
was the prolongation of hostilities to which our enemies
were thereby encouraged, and which resulted in scenes of
carnage and devaatation on this continent and misery and
suffering on the other, such as have scarcely a paralM in
history. . . . These neutral nations treated our in-
vasion by onr former limited and special agent as though
it were the attempt of a sovereign to snppreas a rebellion
against lawful authority."
In the winter of 1862 Jnmes A. DcDougall, of
California, introduced in the Senate a series of resola-
ovGoO'^lc
ABRA.HAH LIKCOLN. 196
tioQs, declaring the course of Frnnce UDfriendly to
tJiis country, expressing sympathy with Mexico, and
bitterly denoancing any attempts on the part of
European monarchies to interfere with republican
governments on this continent. 5ut the Republicans
liii<l these resolutions on the table. Again, in the fol-
lowing winter, Mr. McDougall came forward with a
resolution calling upon the President to demand the
withdrawal of the French troops which h«d been
landed in Mexico, and if this demand wiis not com-
plied with in a reasonable time war should be de-
clared against France.
In the spring of 1864, Henry Winter Davis was
more saccessful, nnd obtained the unanimous support
of the House to the following spirited reassertion of
the Monroe Doctrine : —
" JRetoloed, That the Congress of the United States are
unwilling, by silence, to leave the natioDs of the world
under the impression that they are indifferent spectators
of the deplorable events now transpiring in the Bepublic
of Mexico J and tbey therefore thiok fit to declare that it
does not accord with the policy of the United States to
acknowledge a monarohieal government, erected on the
ruins of any republican government in America, under the
•uspiceii of «sy European power."
This resolution Mr. McDougall attempted to pass
in the Senate, but unsuccessfully.
The House called upon the President for the cor-
respondence with France on the occupation of Mex-
ico, and a part of it he saw fit to submit In a letter
from the Secretary of State to Mr. Dayton, Minister
ov Google
196 LIFE AND HUES OF
to FraDce, there was revealed this remarkable state*
ment in reference to the House resolution: —
" It is hardly oeceeaaTy, after what I have heretofer«
written with perfect candor for the information of France,
to 8&Y that tltia resolution truly interpreta the unanimoua
sentiment of the people of the United States in regard to
Mexico. It is, however, another and distinct question
whether the United States would think it necessary or
pr(^r to express themselves in the form adopted by the
House of B^presentatires at this time. This is a practical
and purely Executive question, and the 'decision of its Con-
stitutionality belongs not to the House of Representatives,
nor even to Congress, bat to the President of the United
States. You will, of course, take notice that the declara-
tion made by the House of B^presentatives is in the form
of a joint resolution, which, before it can acquire the char-
acter of a legislative act, must receive, first, the concur-
rence of the Senate, and, secondly, the approval of the
President of the United States ; or, in case of his dissent,
the renewed assent of both houses of Congress, to be ex-
pressed by a majority of two*th>rda of each body. While
the President receives the declaration of the House of
Bepresentatives with the profound respect to which it is
entitled, as an exposition of its sentiments upon a grave
and important subject, he directs that yon inform the gov-
ernment of France that he does not at present oontemplate
any departure from the policy which this Government haa
hitherto pursued in regard to the war which exists between
France and Mexico."
Mr. Davis's report contuos this timely and jast
reproof: —
" The Committee on Foreign Afl&irs have examined
the correspondence submitted by the President relative to
ovGoO'^lc
ABRAHiil LINCOLN. 197
the joint reeolation on Mexican afiairs with the profound
respect to which it is entitled, because of tlie gravity of
its subject and the distinguished source from which it
emanated.
" They regret that the Preeident should have bo widely
departed from the usage of Constitational governments as
to make a pending resolution of so grave and delicate a
character the sabject of diplomatic explanations. They re-
gret still more that the Preeident should have thought
proper to inform a foreign government of a radical and
serious conflict of opinion and jurisdiction between the de-
positories of the legislative and Executive power of the
United States.
"No expression of deference can make the denial of
the right of Congress Constitutionally to do what the
HoQse did with absolute ananimity, other than derogatory
to their dignity.
" They learn with surprise that, in the opinion of the
President, the form and term of expressing the judgment
of the United States on recognizing a monarchical gov-
ernment imposed on a neighboring republic is a 'purely
Executive question, and the decision of it ConBtitutionally
belongs not to the House of Itepresentatives, nor even to
Congress, but to the President of the United. States.'
" This assumption is equally novel and inadmiBsible.
TSo President has ever claimed such an exclusive author-
ity. Ko Congress can ever permit its expression to pass
without dissent."
If the course of the Administration in dealing
with this Mexican affair was liable to criticism at
the ontset, there need be no question as to its sound-
ness on the Monroe Doctrine. A war with France
at such a time would have been unwise, and it would
be diflBcult now to apologize for a policy leading to
one. The. diplomatic skill which prevented a foreign'
ov Google
198 LIFE AND TIMES OF
war, when the domestic one taxed so heavily the
resources and patriotism of the conntry, is now an
occasion of national congratulation and admiratioD,
whatever regret may be felt touching the necessities
which sometimes surrounded the Bituation.
When the GoTernment reached the point in which
it could be done with effect, the demand for the re-
moval of tiie French troops was persistently pressed,
until France became as eager to get them away from
Mexico as the United States was to have them away.
The French were dissatisfied with their mean and
unwise adventure, and even plotted for the downfall
of the nnfortunate man whom they had duped into
trying to sit on an imaginnry throne in Mexico.
And the Pope, having utterly failed in bis avaricious
scheme, also abandoned Maximilian, and turned a
deaf ear to the lamentations of his distracted queen.
The American Secretary of State, in oily words, urged
the evacuation of Mexico, and as the ultimate success
of the Government in conquering the rebels became
certaio, the French emperor exhibited .great anxiety
to comply with the demand.
Mr. Seward said : " You will assure the French
government that the United States, in wishing to free
Mexico, have (has) nothing so much at heart as pre-
:serving peace and friendship with France."
However true were these diplomatic words, France
had but one thing at heart, and that was to get out
of the mad abyss in which all her evil purposes and
hopes had been swallowed up. The demands of the
United States were complied with ; the French troops
ovGoO'^lc
irchic democracy murdered
Austrian prince, and sent
u-minded widow to Europe
'arning to monarchic ambi-
[>f the wonderful political
sentory, whose bloody ekel-
itself through the ministry
the tomb of Napoleon and
ov Google
LIFE AHD TIMES OF
CHAPTER IX.
1861—1863— WAR OF THE REBELUON— FINANCE— THE
GREENBACK — MR. CHASE '— POLITICS, ELECTIONS,
DRAFT-RIOTS— THE GREAT BATTLES OF THE REBELL-
ION FOUGHT AT THE NORTH— THE NEWSPAPERS-
MR. LINCOLN AND THE AIDERS AND ABETTORS— "£W-
CONSTITUTIONAL " BECOMES A BY-WORD.
THE war gave rise to extraordiimry demands on
the financial resources of the Government, which
at the outset were met without very great difficulty
hy the skill of the Secretary of the Treasary and the
patriotism of the bankers and the people. Still the
demands increased, and the credit of the coantry was
shaken hy its reverses on the battle-field, the general
uncertainty as to tbe future course of events, and, to
some extent, 4>y the intrigues of misguided and dis-
loyal mea of the loyal section. Extraordinary efforts
were necessary to furnish means for the prosecution
of the war. To this end Mr. Chase recommended in
his report in December, 1861, that Go.vemment notes
or bills, properly secured by the bonds of the Nation
and convertible into coin, be provided and placed in
the hands of banks and associations ; this plan being
based upon the idea that the vast loan without in-
terest made by the people to the various banking
inaUtutiqns might, with great propriety, be turned to
ovGoO'^lc
ABKAHAU UNOOLK. 201
the advantage of the OoveTomeat, and heooe to tiie
people themselves, instead of to a few hundred pri-
vate corporations.
Duriog the winter of 1861 the banks suspended
specie payment, generally, throughout the country,
and the Government was forced to do the same with
its own notes in circulation. Congress had authorized
the issue of a considerable quantity of notes to sup-
ply the deficiency between the amount obtained from
the revenues aad the loans provided for, and the
amount needed for current expenses, bat not for a
general circulating currency. In his report ip De-
cember, 1862, Mr. Chase again renewed his recom-
mendation of the previous year, and both Houses of
Congress accepted it. Under this plan the notea of
the United States wonld go into circulation as money
to supply the demands of the country and the Gov-
ernment. It was a choice between a currency fur-
nished by hundreds of individual banks without
responsibility beyond the resources of each separate
institution, and a currency furnished* by the Got-
erament.
There were other considerations in favor of adopt-
ing the plan of Mr. Chase which he ably set forth.
He said a uniform national currency would thus be
totablished on the honor and credit of the Govern-
ment, and also supported by private capital; this
wonld give the currency of the country the highest
possible value and sepurity; it would greatly facili-
tate home and foreign business; it would reconcile
the interests of the banks and the people, more
ov Google
20S LIFE AND TIMES OP
nearly ; it would supply a new bond of union among
the States ; and every dollar <^ it put in circulation
in the thousands of channels, would give every maa
and every child a new and unchangeable interest in
the prosperity and permanency of the Government.
Thus the present national or "greenback" system
took ita origin, and rose rapidly into popular esteem.
Congress also anthorized the circulation of a small
fractioDal currenoy for which coin was substitated
after the war. The final steps in organizing the
national banking system with a national currency
were not taken until in the winter of 1862, or shortly
before the end of the session of Congress in the
spring of 1863; and the law was somewhat modified
during the subsequent session. But the test of the
system had been satisfactory, and the enactment of
this law, and putting it into execution, revived the
public credit at once, and gave an amazing impulse
to public affairs. The loans were taken readily, and
all the demands of the Treasary filled without diffi-
culty. Although gold became an article of merchan-
disc and a dollar of it could not be purchased by a
dollar in "greenback," the Government and country
had no further embarrassment during the war.
At the end of the fiscal year, June 30, 1863, Mr.
Chase retired from the Cabinet, and was succeeded
by William Pitt Fessenden, as Secretary of the
Treasury; but not until be had seen his wise and
fortunate financial system established and successful
beyond the most sanguine expectation. And now,
after a test of twenty years, it is still more firmly
:b,GoO'^lc
ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 209
fixed m the affections of the people ; having in that
time exerted a deeper and more wide-spread inflaeace
than its author ever imagined, in the work of " re-
construction" in Qttiting the conntry and establiahing
a common national feeling.
The national greenback banking system is one of
the great, immeasurably valuable legacies of Mr.
Lincoln's Administration to the country. Its estab-
lishment was one of the most happy events in the
history of this Republic ; and for it, and tiie wonder^
ful management of the finances of the country under
unparalleled demands, Mr. Cbnse will, perhaps, dis-
pute with Alexander Hamilton the title of first
American financier. Of this system Hugh McCul-
loch, who succeeded Mr. Fessenden in March, 1866,
says :—
" SiDoe the coiDineiicemeut of the special session of
1861, the tDDBt important snbjeot which has dem&Dded and
received the attention of Congress baa been that of pro-
viding the means for the .prosecation of the war, and the
Bnccess of the Government in raising money is evidence
of the wisdom of the measures devised for this purpose,
as well as of the loyalty of the people and the resources
of the country. No nation within the same period ever
borrowed solargely or with so much facility. It is now
demonstrated that a Republican Government can not only
carry on a war on the most gigantic scale, and create
a debt of immense magnitude, but can place this debt
on a satis&otory basis, and meet every engagement with
fideli^."
The extraordinary success and skill in the man-
agement of the national finances were in marked
ov Google
204 LIFE AND TIMES OF
contrast with the almost childish blundering and
utter ftiilure of the rebel efforts in the same direc-
tion. From bad at the outset, they went on to worse
continually, until they were irrecoverably bankrupt
and rained long before the final crush of arms.
From December, 1862, to the middle of the fol-
lowing year, was the most gloomy period of the great
struggle for the preservation of the Nation. While
the want of great progress in the army in the West
and the reverses in Vii^nia furnished some founda-
tion for this state of affairs, to the political opponents
of the Administration and the friends of peace and
secession in the North must be charged mninly the
evils of these dark days. In the winter of 1862 the
French emperor considered himself called upon to
offer his services as a pacificator between the " bel-
ligerents." This proposition the Administration and
loyal people looked upon as implying the recognition
of a Southern government, and an arrangement of
the differences between the two parts of the divided
Union. It meant the suspension of the war, the only
road to peace, and a discussion of the now irrecon-
cilable elements of division. Fair and right-minded
Russia had rejected the idea of this foolish and un-
friendly proposition, and even England knew it was
useless. In his letter of February, 1863, declining
the proposition of France, through diplomatic cour-
tesy and in view of the partisan dissensions at home
which were greatly crippling the Administration, Mr.
Seward made an extended review of the true condi-
tion of American affairs as bearing on the case, and
ovGoO'^lc
ABRAHAM UNCOLN. 205
of the certainty of the failure of any sach step. la
this reply the Secretary says : —
" This Government, if required, does not hesitate in
submitting its achievements to the test of comparison;
and it maintains that in do part of the world, and in no
times, ancient or modern, has a Nation, when rendered alt
unready for the combat by the enjoyment of eighty years
of almost unbroken peace, so quickly awakened at the
alarm of sedition, put forth energies so vigorous, and
achieved snccese so signal and effective as those which
have marked the progress of this contest on the part of
the Union. . . .
"At the same time, it is manifest to the world that onr
resources are yet abundant, and our credit adeqnate to the
existing emergency. ...
" The Government has not shut out the knowledge of
Uie present temper, any more than of the past purposes,
of the insurgents. There is not the least ground to sup-
pose that the controlling actors would be persuaded at
this moment, by any arguments which national commis-
sioners could offer, to forego the ambition that has impelled
tbemto the disloyal position they are occupying. . . .
"On the other hand, as I have already iotimated, this
Government has not the least thought of relinquishing the
trust which has been confided to it by the Nation under
the most solemn of al) political sanctions; and if it had
any such thought, it would still have abundant reason to
know that peace proposed at the cost of dissolution would
be immediately, unreservedly, and indignantly rejected
by the American people. It is a great mistake that
European statesmen make, if they suppose this people are
demoralized,"
Bat this evil and unstatesman-like meddling on
Uie p^t of France was not without its bad influeace
ovGoo'^lc
206 UFE AND nMES OF
on the discontented in the North, or its encourage-
ments to ttie Rebellion. Id the fall of 1862 the
elections went figainst the AdmioistraUon. In New
York Horatio Seymour, a medillesome " Peace Dem-
ocrat," was elected Governor by several thousand
majority. And in most other States where local and '
Gmgressional elections were held there seemed to be
a verdict ngainst the Emancipation Proclamation, and
in favor of letting the Union go by default. A very
considerable element in the Army of the Potomac
was opposed to a continunnce of the WHr, mainly
basing its opposition on its teachings and sentiments
as to the emancipation of the slaves of the rebels.
But the emancipation policy of the President was
* distasteful in other quarters. In the border Slave
States, which had been held partly by patriotism and
partly by diplomacy and main force, from going into
the Rebellion, a strong reaction set in against the
Administration, carrying with it nearly the entire
populution. The abolition test was too mm-h for
them. But this was never wonderful in the mid^t of
slavery, when in the free North the negro question
was often more than a match for the material of
which some patriots were made. In the Northern
elections in 1863 the isspe was plainly made for or
against the continuance of the war. And here, after
all, it may be said, the great battles for the perpe-
tuity of the Union were fought. These were the
decisive conflicts. The defeat of the Administration
of the Government at the polls, in the section from
which it drew all its financial and military power,
ovGoo'^lc
ABRAHAM UNGOLN. 207
vonld have implied defeat in the struggle on the
battle-fields of the South.
Who were the allies of the South and the enemies
of the National Union in these conQicts at the North 7
Early in the spring of 1863 general State elections
were held in New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and
OoDOecticut ; in the first of which the anti-war Dem-
ocratic candidate for governor had a plurality of
votes over the Republican, but the anti-secession or
war wing of the Democracy had a candidate, and the
election was thrown into the Jiegislature, where the
Republicans were able to save their governor and
State on the side of the Union. In the other two
States the contest was close, the Republicans suc-
ceeding by reduced majorities. No more bitter and
desperately contested elections were, perhaps, ever
held in New England. And, although the Admin-
istration party was successful, the tide was then
evidently against its policy and against the war.
The bloody conflict which Franklin Pierce and others
predicted would be fought by the friends of the South,
of slavery, on the streets of the cities of the North,
were merely, mainly, transferred to the polls. The
war was declared to be a failure, and all the measures
and promises of the Administration were condemned,
and every effort possible put forth to weaken its
strength and thwart its purposes. And in spite of
all the derision and curses of the South for Northern
sympathy and pretensions, and the oft-repeated
pledges of the Southern leaders to oppose all over-
tures for reunion, and hold to their determination to
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208 UFE AND TIMES OP
fight on to the death of one or both parties, these
preached the possibility of conciliation and thereby
restoratloa of the Union. An idle pretense, na most
of the anti-war Democrats very Trell knew. The two
years of war had only deepened the determination
of the leaders of the atrocious BebelHon to fight on.
They said: —
"The Yankeee ought to know by this time what we
mean. Democrats or Liacolnites, we hate them all alike.
We are not going to submit to a lecherous union with
either. We despise equally the Black Bepublican Aboli-
tionists and the Copperhead political tricksters. We hold
at equal value the threats of the one and the &woiog
hnmboggery of the other. Sharp at a trade, let them
understand unmiatakably that we have nothing to swap,
least of all have we any intentioD of swapping ourselves.
They must carry their vile wares to some other market."
Still the anti-war, the peace party^ and the North-
era sympathizer went on, losing no opportunity to
obstruct the operations of the Qoverament, or to stop
the war entirely, whatever the consequences. Con-
gress had provided for the enrollment of all the able-
bodied men, not omiting aliens who had declared
their intentions to become citizens, between the ages
of eighteen and forty-five, with the view of filling
the deficient quotas under the new calls for troops
by drafting. And, notwithstanding the object of the
conscription was to fill the army, a strange provision
was made for receiving three hundred dollars as a
commutation fee, in lieu of the service of the drafted
man. This measure now became the special object
ovGoO'^lc
ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 209
of hatred to the opposition party, or anti-war Dem-
ocrats, and they set about obstmctiog the necessary
arrangements of the President to carry it out. One
of the judges of the Supreme Court of New York, .
and Justice Woodward and the other Democratic
judges of the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania de-
clared the whole measure and all the efforts to carry
it out " unconstitutional." To prevent the filling up
of the old armies, or the formation of a new force at
the North, was even a greater defeat to the cause of
the ITDion than a defeat at the hands of the rebels
on the battle-field. The adverse moral effect was
much greater. It was weakening the Oovemment
and strengthening the Rebellion. For whatever pur-
pose all this opposition was designed, it had but one
effect, harassing and weakening the Government,
decreasing foreign confidence, and increasing the evil
inclinations of certain foreign powers, and strengthen-
ing and encouraging the Rebellion. This verdict
time can never erase. It is not for the historian to
attempt a palliatory plea, if he would. History
neither forgets nor forgives. The war record of the
Democratic party, as an organization, is without
apology, and mainly infamous. It is a span which
should, in practice, in the reconstructed and regen-
enited Republic, go into oblivion. The two good
ends of the old party, broken, lie on each side of this
chasm of madness.
The Fourth of July, in 1863, as far as could be
in the loyal States, was made the occasion of giving
a new impulse to patriotic energy. But the leaders
ov Google
210 LIFE AND TTUSa OF
of the opposition gave to their oratory a peculiar
direction, aad divei^ent to tiie ourreot of patriotio
fervor, which in song, speech, and act rolled in m
torrent against the Rebellion. And, to some extent,
even this occasion or reunion and national eologiam
was tamed to the disadvantage of the oonntry, in
weakening the faith of the people in the Admtnistra*
tion, and streng^ening the disposition to resiat ita
measures for preserving the Union.
But Horatio Seymour, and hosts of others, in their
speeches and acts, and many of the leading opposition
newspapers were preparing the way for the riotona
resistance to the (Government which immediately
followed the enormous pretensions of the ''gloriona
Fourth."
On the 13th of July the draft began in New
York. Governor Seymour had said tiie measure
WHS unconstitutional, and some of the silly news>
papers had said the draft act was designed by the
miscreants at the head of the Government to lessen
the number of Democratic votes at ilie next election.
Forgetful of what the whole man-popnlation of the-
South was submitting to for the overthrow of thfr
Union, the greatest excitement was raised throughout
ike North over the draft. State Rights, habeas corpus,
personal liberty, the Constitution, everything was
conjured up, and no effort spared to fire the Northern
heart against it by the opposition lenders. And not
without efieet.
Incendiary hand-bills had been circulated Uiroagh.
the parts of New York City most likely to be in-
ovGoO'^lc
ABBAHAU LINCOLN. 211
flaenced by them, and a time fixed for beginning a
bloody resiBtance to the draft, bat no very great out-
break occurred until Monday, July 18, 1863. The
attention of the rioters was first mainly directed to-
ward the enrolling and draft offices which were
sacked and burned, and some of the officers kilted.
The negro Orphan Asylum on Forty-sixth Street
was sacked and burned. The residences and busi-
ness houses of obnoxious persons were served in th^
same way, and for the greater part of four days the
fiendish mob had the city in its grasp. The hun-
dreds of infernal saloons, recruiting offices of Hell,
were its head-quarters, and from these the thousandg
of whisky-maddened wretches sallied forth to their
work of plnnder, arson, and murder. Wherever the
mob went the firemen followed, and where they were
allowed to do so they used some exertion to stop
the spread of the fire. But there seemed to be an
understanding between the firemen and the rioters.
The manufactories and workshops were dosed by the
mob and the bands ordered into its ranks. A vast
' army of wretched and wicked women and children
followed this brutal mass for carrying to their miser-
able homes the spoils from the hands of sons and
husbands.
On Tuesday the Qovemor came into the city, and
addressed the mob. He said it was made of his
friends. He told, the rioters that he had sent to
Washington to have the draft stopped, and henee
they should disperse and be good citizens until his
agent came back, and then they could reassemble
ov Google
21 2 UFE 4ND TIMES OF
when they pleased. However well-meant were the
Governor's efforts, his words were badly chosen, and
left the impression of an implied conditional sanction
of the canse of the rioters. The draft mnst be
stopped. It was charging the draft with the riot.
At all events the Governor did not influence the
conduct of these his friends.
Now, from Gettysburg came the New York militia
and several regiments of regulars, by order of the
Government, and Thursday, the 16th, ended the riot,
but not until several hundred, a thousand perhaps,
of the rioters had been slain. In Boston and several
other places at the same time some attempts at re-
sistance were made, but they were of little con-
sequence comparatively. The draft went on, as did
the subsequent one in October, and there was no
disturbance of much public note. But at all times
and wherever resistance was made to this seeming
necessity of the Government, it was done by foreign-
born citizens, and usually of the more recent im-
portations. And while it is also true that the New
York and other rioters were mainly of the lowest Irish
Catholics, it will not be forgotten that the teachers
in the Church, the bishops and priests, used all their
influence on the side of order and obedience to the'
Government ; most of them, perhaps, being zealous
patriots.
The New York Democratic organizations were
now especially loud in denoancing the Government,
in declaring the unconstitutionality of the draft law,
and urged the Governor to resist it by the military
ovGoO'^lc
ABRAHAU LINGOLH. 213
power of the State. This again led Mr. Seymour to
pot himBelf oa UDeoviable record by a long letter to
the Preddent, on the 3d of Angnst, ask'ing the draft
to be stopped, and at least nntil its " Constitution-
ality " be further tested. The President wrote an
answer four days aH^erwards, and in it are these
ontting words : —
" I do not object to abide a decisioD of the Uatted
Statee Supreme Coart, or of the Judges thereof, on the
Constitationality of the draft law. In &ot, I should be
villing to fiicilitate the chtainiog of it. But I can DOt
ooDseot to lose the time Trbile it is being obtained. We
are coDtending with an enemy who, as I noderstand,
drives every able-bodied man he can reach into his ranks,
very mnch as a butcher drives bullocks into a slaughtei^
pen. No time is wasted, no argument is nsed. This pro^
duces an army which will soon torn upon oar now victori-
ous soldiers already in the field, if they shall not be
sustained by recruits as they should be. It produces an
army with a rapidity not to be matched on our side, if
we first waste time to re-experiment with the volunteer
system, already deemed by Congress, and palpably, in fact,
so i&r exhausted as to he inadequate; and then more time
to obtain a court decision as to whether a law is Constitu-
tional which requires a part of those not now in the serv-
ice to go to the Md of those who are already in it ; and
still more time to determine with absolote certainty that
we get those who are to go in the precisely legal propor-
tion to those who are not to go. My purpose is to be in
my action just aud Constitutioual, and yet practical, in
performing the important duty with which I am chained,
of maintaining the unity and free principles of our com-
mon country. Your obedient servant,
" A. LlKCOLN."
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214 UFE AITD TIHE8 OF
Several test cases as to the Ooostitationality of
the Enrollment Act and the draft were subsequently
made under t)ircuit and Distriot Judges, and all of
them affirming the act; and Jadge Daniel Agnew,
Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of PennsylTania^
who reversed the decisions of his Democratic prede-
cessor, whom he also defeated by a large m^ority in
the election of 1863, said : —
" The Constitatiooal authority to use the national foroes
creates a corresponding duty to provide a Dumber adequate
to the necessity, . . . Power and duty now go hand
in hand with the extremity, until every available man
ID the Nation is called into service, if the emergency
requires it."
The most apocryphal era of American politics is
^at embracing the transition from slavery to free-
dom, fiom the passage of the Kansas-Nebraska Act
to the end of Andrew Johnson's Administration.
Political pretensions were then on the most stupen-
dous scale. And only in the light of results and after
events do they appear at their tme value. In 1860
there arose the cry of " The Constitution as it is, and
the Union as it was." But this did not reach the
key in which the spirit of the times was really
pitched. And long ago, every man knows, this
specious shibboleth was numbered among the legends
of the visionary past. One of the most glaring frauds
of this period was the everlasting play on Uie word
" Constitution " on the part of the " Opposition." All
acts that restrained them from doing what they de-
sired, or compelled them to do what they did not
ovGoO'^lc
ABRAHAU LINCOUT. 216
deeire, were "unconstitutional." Even to breathe a
thoaght against slaTery was " unconstitutional;" But
to scheme for Its extensioa and against freedom, was
ever in harmony with the nature of Magna Cbarta.
Coercion was rankly " unconetitutional." To fight
against secession at all was " unconstitutional." If
moral suasion could not preserve the Union, nothing
else would, for everything else was " unconstitu-
tional." To interfere with the liberties of men, even
when they were using them against the welfare of
the country, was " unconstitutional." Only universal
license and habeas corpus were Constitutional. The
blackest of all " unconstitutional " things was a
thought or act looking toward the immediate or ulti-
mate overthrow of African slavery. So it went on
to the smallest and greatest of things, until " uncon-
stitutional" became a by-word. And as such it has
gone into the history of the times, as suggestive of
the most insincere, immoral, and treacherous period
d American politics. That this charge and crime
should be allowed to pass in comparative silence and
forgetfulnesB is one of the great political virtues of
to-day.
Early in the fall of 1861 the grand jury presented
to the United States Circuit Court in New York sev-
eral newspapers of that city as aiders and abettors
of the Rebellion, In this presentation the jury made
this unanswerable statement: —
"The grand jury are aware that free govemmento
allow liberty of speech and of the press to their utmost
limit, but there is nevertheless a limit. If a person Id a
ovGoO'^lc
216 LIFE AND TIMES OF
fortress or an army were to preach to the soldiers siibmia-
Bion to the enemy he Tronld be treated aa kd offender.
Would he be more culpable than the cUizen who, in the
midst of the most formidable conspiracy and Rebellion,
tells the conspirators and rebels that they are right, en-
courages them to persevere in resietaoce, and condemns the
effort of loyal oitizeos to overcome and punish them as an
" nnboly war?" If the atterance of such language in the
streets or through the press is not a crime, then there is a
great defect in our taws, or they were not made for suoh
an emergency."
By order of the PostmaBter-General eome of the
papers were soon after taken from the mails or for-
bidden to be fillowed to pass through them. Even
the publication of some of them was stopped. At
different times, the most offensive and criminal of
these Democratic papers were suppressed. In the
spring of 1864 two of them in New York City pub-
lished a forged proclamation of the President calling
for four hundred thousand soldiers, which led to their
seizure for a time by order of the War Department.
About this time, too, one of the Cincinnati papers
was wholly or partially suppressed by the order of
the general commanding in the department. In
Baltimore and other cities the same fate befell evil-
doers. But all this brought curses upon the Admin-
istration, and set loose another deluge of the " uncon-
stitutional" talk and bluster, and although the "aiding
and abetting" were checked in certain cliannels they
broke out more virulently in others where the risks
were less or the recklessness greater.
The Governor of New York was up in arms at
ovGoO'^lc
ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 217
once. la a letter to tlie District Attorney of the
County of New York he wrote : —
" I call upon yon to look into the facte connected with
the seizure of ' The Journal of Commerce ' and of ' The
New York World.' If these acts were illegal, the
offenders must be ponished."
So the necessary steps were taken, bnt the grand
jury declined to act in the premises against the
Government. The Governor was not to be thwarted
Id that way. He ordered some magistrate to be
found who could get the case on, and vindicate the
trampled rights of citizens to do what injury to the
country their misguided judgments directed. Qeneral
John A. Dix and several other officers of the Gov-
ernment were accordingly arrested, but being soon
after released, the case ended. In the Bistrict At-
torney's report or affidavit, he said that he believed
that "Hon. A. Lincoln" had actually been a party
to the " unconstitutional " acta in directing " John A.
Dix" to feloniously order one William Hays to com-
mand some other persons to go armed and equipped
against these good newspapers in the quiet prosecu-
tion of their Constitutional privileges.
In Congress this matter was brought up, and
resolutions introduced in both Houses declaring that
the seizure of the two New York papers " was an act
unwarranted in itself, dangerous to the cause of the
Union, in violation of the Constitntion, and subver-
sive of the principles of civil liberty, and as such is
hereby censured." But these resolutions were not
acted upon, and all loyal people thought them, like
ov Google
218 IJFE JUn> TIMES OF
the cause the^r were designed to defend, dangerom
to the interests of the Union. And so these foolish
and wicked matters went on to the end. And so,
between the " enemies in the rear " and the enemies
on the battle-field, the Administration and the loyal
people went on in the work before them. Scarcely
had the resolutions mentioned here been disposed of
forever before the following was submitted to the
House : —
"Reaolvedy That the Committee on the Judiciary be
iDstruct«d to inquire and report what, if any, additional
legislation may be necessary to punish the fot^ry and
publioatioa of official documents, and what legislation is
necessary to punish those who, through the press or other-
wise, give information, aid, or comfort to the rebels."
About this time the President was engaged in a
personal combat with the "Opposition" aiders and
abettors in Ohio and other States, over haheat corpus,
and " unconstitutional " arrests, briefly referred to in
other chapters.
In reply to some resolutions and a letter from
Albany, New Tork, concerning " arbitrary arrests,"
which Mr. Lintoln considered it proper for him to
make, is the following extract, constituting a con-
siderable part of the remarkable tetter, dated June
12, 1863 :—
"Prior to my iDstallation here it had been inculcated that
any State had a lawful right to secede from the National Union,
and that it wauld be expedient to exercise the right whenever
the devotees of the doctrine should fell to elect a President to
their own liking, I was elected contrary to their lilting ; and.
ovGoot^lc
ABRAHAM LIKCOLN. ' 219
•coordinglf , to fkr aa it was legally possible, they bad taken
seven States out of the Union, had seized many of the United
States forte, and had fired upon the United States fiag, aU be-
fore I was inaugurated, and, of course, before I had done any
4^cial act whatever. The RebellioD thus b^sn soon raa iuto the
present civil war ; and, in certain respects, it began od very un-
equal terms between the parties. The insurgents had been pre-
paring for it mora than thirty years, while the Gh>vernment
had taken no steps to resist them. The former had carefully
considered all the means which oould be turned to their account.
It undoubtedly was a well-pondered reliauce with them that in
thdr own unrestricted effiirts to destroy Union, Constitution,
and law altc^ether, the Government would, in great d^ree,
be restrained by the same'Constitution and law from arresting
their progress. Their sympathizers pervaded all departmenU of
the Government and nearly all communities of the people.
From this material, under cover of ' liberty of speech,' ' liberty
of the press,' and 'habecu corpus,' they hoped to keep on foot
amongst us a most efficient corps of spies, informers, suppliers,
and uders and abettors of their cause in a thousand ways.
They knew that in times such as th^y were inaugurating, by
the Constitution itself the 'habtat carpus ' might be suspended ;
but they also knew they had friends who would make a
question as to who was to suspend it ; meanwhile their spies
and others might remain at large to help on their cause. Or
if, as has happened, the Executive should suspend the writ,
without ruinous waste of time, iuetancee of arresting innocent
persons might occur, as are always likely to occur in such
cases ; and then a clamor could be raised in regard to this, which
might be, at least, of some service to the insui^nt cause. It
needed no very keen perception to discover this part of the
enemy's program, so soon as by open hoetiliUes their machinery
was fairiy put in motion. Yet, thoroughly imbued with a
reverence for the guaranteed rights of individuals, I was slow
to adopt the strong measures which by degrees I have been
forced to regard as being within the exceptious of the Constitu-
tion, and as indispensable to the public safety. Nothing is
better known to history than that courts of justice are utterly
incompetent to such cases. Civil courts are organised chiefly for
ovGoot^lc
fi20 LIFE AND TIMES OF
trials of individualB, or, at most, a few iudiTidnals acting in
concert ; and this in quiet times, and on charges of crimes well
defified in the law. Even in times of peace bands of faorsfr
thieves and robbers frequently grow too numerous and powerful
for ordinary courts of justice. But what comparison, in num-
bers, have such bands ever borne to the insurgent sympathizers
even in many of the loyal Stateef Again, a jury too frequently
bas at least one member more ready to hang the panel than to
hang the traitor. And yet, again, be who dissuades one man
from volunteering, or induces one soldier to desert, weeVens the
Union cause as much as he who kills a Union soldier in battle.
Yet this dissuanoD or indnCement may be so conducted as to
be no defined crime of which any civil court would take
cognizance.
" Ours is a case of rebellion — so called by the resolutions be-
fore me — in fact, a clear, flagrant, and gigantic case of rebeU-
ion ; and the provision of the ConstitulioQ that ' the privilege
of the writ of habeaa oorpia ^all not be suspended unless when,
in cases of rebellion or invasion, the public safety may require
it,' is tiie provision which specially applies to our present case.
This provision plainly attests the understanding of those who
made the Constitution, that ordinary courts of justice are in-
adequate to ' cases of rebeUion ' — attests their purpose that, in
such cases, men may be held in custody whom the courts,
acting on ordinary rules, would discharge. Hahea* eorjnu does
not discbai^ men who are proved to be guilty of defined
crime ; and its suspension is allowed by tlie Constitution on
purpose that men may be arrested and held wbo can not be
proved to be guilty of defined crime, ' when, iu cases of rebell-
ion or invasion, the public safety may require it.'
"This is precisely our present case; a case of rebellion,
wherein the public safety does require the suspension. Indeed,
arrests by process of courts, and arrests in cae» of rebellion, do
not proceed altogether upon the same basis. The former i^ di-
rected at the small percentage of ordinary and continuous per-
petration of crime, while the latter is directed at sudden and
extensive uprisings against the Government, which, at most,
will succeed or fail in no great length of time. In the latter
case, arrests are made, not so much for what has been done, as
ov Google
ABBA.HAH LIXOOLN. 221
fiir what probably would be dcxia. The latter is more for the
jweveBtire and less for the vrndictive thaa the former. In
such caeee the purpoeee of meo are much more easily under-
stood than in cases of ordinary crime. The man vho stands
by and says nothing when the peril of his Qovemmeot is dis-
cussed, can not be miBunderstood. If not hindered, he is sure
to help the enemy; much more, if be talks ambiguously, talks
for his country nith 'buts* and 'i&' and 'ands.' Of how
little value the Coustitutjonal proTisions I have quoted will be
rendered if arrests shall never be made until defined crimes
shall have been committed, may be illustrated by a few notable
examples. General John C. Breckinridge, G^eneral Robert E,
Lee, General Joseph E. Johnston, OAieral John B. Magruder,
General William B. Preston, General Bimon B, Buckner, and
Commodore Fnuklin Buchanan, now occupying the very highest
places in the rebel war service, were all within the power of the
Government unee the Rebellion b^an, and were nearly as welt
known to be traitors then as now. Unquestionably if we had
seised and held them, the insurgent cause would be much weaker.
But no one of t^em bad then committed any crime defined in
the law. Every one of them, if arrested, would have been dis-
charged OB habeas corpus were the writ allowed to operate. In
view of theee and similar cases, I think the time not unlikely
to come when I shall be blamed for having made too few arrests
rather than too many."
The Ohio Democracy now took up this contest
where it was dropped with the Albany Committee,
and along review of the whole case, dated June 26th,
and signed by a prominent Democrat from each
CongressioDal District, among them being George
H. Pendleton, was presented to the President. To
this the following reply was returned, dated Jane
29, 1863.:—
"GsHTLEHBN, — The resolutions of the Ohio Democratic
Btste OoDveution, which you present me, together with your
ov Google
322 LIFE AND TUfES OF
introdactoiy utA cloring renuirka, being in podtion and argu-
ment munly the nine as the reeolutJona of the Democntio
meeting at Albany, New York, I refer you to my raaponse to
the latter as meeting most of the points in the former.
" Thie response you evideotly used in preparing yonr re-
marks, and I deeire no more than Uiat it be used with accuracy.
In a single reading of your remarks, I only discovered one in-
accuracy in matter which I suppose you took irom that paper.
It is where you say: 'Hie underBigned are unable to agree with
you in the opioioD yoD have expressed that the CooatitutioD is
different io time of insurrection or iuTasion from what it is in
time of peaoe and public security/
"A recurrence to tbe*paper will show you tint I have not
expressed the opinion yon imppose. I expteesed the opinion
that the Constitution is different tn U» apfiiealioa in cases of
rebellion or invftsion, inToIving the public safety, from what it
a Id times of profound peace and public eecuHty; and this
opinion I adhere to, simply because by the Constitution itself
things may be done in the one case which may not be done in
the other.
" I dislike to waste a word on a merely personal pdnt, but
I must respectfully assure you that you wilt find yourselves at
f&vM should yon ever seek for evidence to prove your assunip-
tion that I ' opposed in discussions before the people the policy
uf the Mexican War.'
"You say: 'Expunge from the Constitation this limitation
upon the power of Congress to suspend the writ of Auieoa eorpus,
and yet the other guarantees of personal liberty would remain
unchanged.' Doubtless if this clause of the Constitution, im-
properly called, as I think, a limitation upon the power of
Congress, were ezptmged, the other guamnteee would remain
tiie same ; but the question is not bow those gaarantees would
stand with that clause ovi of the Constitution, but how they
stand with that clause remaining in it, in case of rebellion or
invasion, involving the public safety. If the liberty could be
indulged in expunging that clause, letter and spirit, I really
think the Constitutional argument would be with yon.
" Hy general view on this question was stated in the Albany
response, and hence I do not state it now. I only add that, aa
ovGoO'^lc
ABRAHAM LINOOLIT. 223
■eeou to me, the benefit of tlie writ of luJ>au isor^put n the great
ineaDB through which the gaaraateei of persooal liberty are
ooneerred and made avBilable ia the last resort; and corrotv
orative of tliis view ia the &ct that Mr. Vallaodigbam, in the
very case in qaesUoD, under theadvioe of able lavyen, nw oot
where else to go but to the JuAeca oorpwe. But by the Coosti-
tution the benefit of the writ of htAeat eorpug itaelf may be
aiupended, when, in case of rehellioa or invaaoD, the public
safety may require it
" You ask, in snbetanoe, whether I really claim that I may
override all the guaranteed rights of individuala, on the plea
of conserving the public safety, when I may choose to say the
public safety requires it. This question, divested of the phrase-
ology calcDlated to represent me as struggliog for an arbitrary
personal prerogative, ia either simply a question %oho shall decide,
or an affirmation diat wAo^ shall decide, what the public
safety does require in cases of rebellion or invasion. The Con-
stitutiou contemplates the question as likely to occur for decision,
but it does not expressly declare who is to decide it. By nec-
essary implication, when rebellion or invasion comes, the
decision is to be made froia time to time; and I think the
man whom for the time the people have, under the Constitu-
tion, made the Commander-in-Chief of their army and navy is
the man who holds the power and bears the responubility of
making it. If he uses the power justiy the same people will
probably justify him ; if he abuses it he is in their hands, to be
dealt with by all the modes they have reserved to themselves
in tbe Constitution.
"The earnestness with which you inmst that persons can
only, in times of rebellion, be lawfully dealt with in accordance
with the rules for criminal trials and punishments in times of
peace mduces me to add a word to what I said on that poiot
in the Albany response. You claim tliat men may, if they
choose, embarrasB those whose duty it is to combat a giant
rebellion, and then be dealt with only in turn as if there were
no rebellion. The Constitution itself rejects this view. The
military arrests and detentions which have been made, including
those of Mr. Vallandigham, which are not different in prin-
djde from the other, have been for prniention, and not for pm-
ov Google
224 LIFE AND TIMES OF
ithmetit — as injunctions to stay injury, a« proiKediiigB to koep
the peace — and hence, like prooeedings in such cases and for
like reasons, they have not been accompanied with indictments
ot trialfi by juries, nor in a siugle case by any punishment what-
ever, beyond wliat is purely incidental to tbe prevention. The
original sentence of imprisoomeDt in Mr. Vallandigham's case
was to prevent injury to the military svvice only, and the
modification of it was made as a lees disagreeable mode to him
of securing the same prevention.
" I am unable to perceive an insult to Ohio in the case of
Mr, Vallandigham. Quite surely nothing of tbis sort was or
is intended. I was wholly unaware that Mr. VallaDdigham
was, at the time of his arrest, a candidate for the Democratio
nomination for Governor, until so informed by your reading to
me the resolutions of the convention. I am grateful to tbe 8tat«
of Ohio for many things, especially for the brave soldiers and
officers she has given in the present national trial to the ivmies
of tbe Union.
"You claim, as I understand, that, according to my own
position in tbe Albany response, Mr. Vallandigham should be
released ; and this because, as you claim, he has not damaged
the military service by discouraging enlistments, encouraging
desertions, or otherwise; and that, if he had, he should be
turned over to the civil authorities under tbe recent acts of
Congress. I certainly do not know that Mr. Vallandi^am has
specifically and by direct language advised against enlistments,
and in favor of desertion an<l resistance to drafting. We all
know that combinations, armed in some instances to resist the
arrest of deserters, began several months ago ; that more recently
the like has appeared in resistance to the enrollment preparatory
to a draft; and that quite a number of assassinations have
occurred from the same animus. These had to be met by mili-
tary force, and this again has led to bloodshed and death- And
now, undera sense of responsibility more neighty and enduring
than any which is merely official, I solemnly declare my belief
that this hindrance of the military, including maiming and
murder, "iB due to the course in which Mr. Vallandigham has been
engaged, in a greater degree than to any other cause; tmd it is
due to him peiaonally in a greater degree than to any other man.
ovGoO'^lc
ABRAHAM UNCOLN. 226
"theie thingB have been Dotorious, knowii to all, and, of
oourae, kaowD to Mr. Vafiaadigbam. Perhaps I would not be
wrong to Bay they originated with his e^>eoial friends and ad-
herenla. With perfect knowledge of them he has frequently,
if not cooetantly, made speeches in Congress Mid before popular
aaeemblies; and if it can be shown that, with theee Uiings
staring' him in the fitce, he has ever uttered a word of re-
buke or couDsel against them, it will be a &ot greatly in
his fitvor with me, and ooe of which, as yet, I am totaUy
ignorant.
" When it ia knowfi that the whole burden of his speeches
has been to sdr up men against the prosecution of the war, and
that in the midst of reeistance to it he has not been known
in any inatanco to counsel against such reeistonce, it is next to
impossible to repel the inference that he has counseled directly
in fiivor of it.
"With all this before their eyee the conveptifm you repre-
sent have nominated Mr. Vallandigbam for Governor of Ohio,
and both they and you have declared the purpose to sustain
the National UnioQ by all Constitutionat meaoe. But, of course,
they and you in common reserve to yourselves to decide what
are Constitutional means, and, unlike the Albuiy meeting, yon
omit to state or intimate that, in your opinion, an army is a
Constitutional means of saving the Union agunst a rebellion,
or even to intimate that you are conscious of an existing
rebellion being in progress with the avowed object of destroy-
ing that very Union. At the same time your nominee for
Governor, in whose behalf you appeal, is known to yon and
to the world to declare against the use of an army to suppress
the rebellion. Yonr own attitude, therefore, encourages deser-
tion, redstance to the draft, and the like, because it teaches
those who inctine to desert and to escape the draft to believe
it is your purpose to [wotect them and to hope that you will
become strong enough to do so.
"After a short peraooal intercourse with you, gentlemen of
the committee, I can not say I think you desire this eiiect to
follow your attitude ; but I assure you that both friends and
enemies of the Union look upon it in this light. It is a sub-
stantial hope, and by consequence a real strength to the enemy.
15-(j
ov Google
226 LIFE AND TIMES OF
It is a fiJae hope, and one which 3'ou. would willingily dispel. I
will make the way exceedingly easy. I aeod you duplicates of
this letter, in order that you, or a majority, may, if you choose,
indorse your namea upon one of them, and return it thus
indorsed to me, with the understanding that thoee Bigniog
are hereby oommitted to the following propoaiUons, and to
nothing else: —
''1. That there is oow a rebellion in the United States,
the object and tendency of which is to destroy the National
Union; aad that, in your opinion, ao army and navy are
ConatituUonal means for sappreeaing that rebellion.
" 2. That no one of you will do anything which, in his own
judgment, will t«nd to binder the increase or &Yor the decrease
or lessen the efficiency of the army and navy, while engaged in
the effort to suppress that rebellion ; and,
" 3. That each of you will, in bis sphere, do all he can to
have the officers, soldiers, and seamen of the army and navy,
while engaged in the effort to suppress the rebellion, paid, fed,
clad, and otherwise well provided for and supported.
"And with the further underBt^Ddiug that upon receiving
the letter and names thus indorsed, I will cause them to be pub-
lished, which publication shall be, within itself, a revocation of
the order in relation to Mr. Vallandigham.
" It will not escape observation that I consent ta the release
of Mr. Vallandigham upon terms not embracing any pledge from
him or from others as to what he will or will not do. I do
this because he is not present to speak for himself, or to
authorize others to speak for him ; and henoe I shall expect that
on returning he would not put himself practically in antagonism
with his firiends. But I do it chiefly because I thereby prevail
on other influential gentlemen of Ohio to so deBne their position
as to be of immense value to the army, thus more than com-
pensating for tbe consequences of any mistake in allowing Mr.
Vallandigham to return, bo that, on die whole, the public safety
will not have suffered by it. Still, in regard to Mr. Vallan-
digham and sil others, I must hereafter, as heretofore, do so
much as the public service may seem to require.
"I have the honor to be, respectfully yours, et«.,
"A. LiKCOLK."
ovGoot^lc
"TfPT^
ABRAHAM UNCOUT. 227
None of the committee signed the President's
dnplicateB, nor were willing to make any pledgee for
themselves, treating the matter as an insult, and
tnaking a long and very personal' and acrimonious
V'ejoinder, showing that so far as they were concerned,
t:he discussion had not only not been productive of
good, but it served to increase the bitterness of the op-
position, the Democratic -party, as an oi^niziition, be-
coming more and more anti-war as the end approached.
The leaders were unable or unwilling to distinguish
between a time of war and a time of peace ; and
whether they were willingly rebellious and false, or
blindly sincere, did not matter in practice. That
they were one or the other time and events proved,
and, perhaps, few of those who participated in this
falsest Hud maddest of all follies among wise men
would care to discuss the matter to-day.
The elections soon came on, and exhibited a great
revulsion in public sentiment. The Republican or
war party was quite generally successful, reversing
all the nnfavorable indications of the spring elections,
and those of the previons fall. Oeneml McClellan
wrote a letter indorsing George W. Woodward for
Governor of Pennsylvania against Andrew G. Curtin,
the war Governor. Woodward was one of the judges
of the Supreme Court of the State who had declared
the enrollment act and draft '^anconstitulional," hut
General McClellan said : " Having some days ago,
had a full conversation with Judge Woodward, I find
that our views f^ee; and I regard his election as
Governor of Pennsylvania called for by the interests
;o by Google
228 LIFE AND TIMES OF
of the Nation." But Cuitin was re-elected by over
fiteeo thousand majority. And in Ohio John Brough
defeated C. L. Vallandigham by over one huadred
thousand votes. In 1862 New York had gone for
Seymour by ten thousand, and now the reactiMi in
that State gave the war party a majority of thirty
thousand. So in Miissachusetts and other Eastern
States the majorities were large, as they were also
throughout the West. The draft riots had had their
effect; the earnest, catting lettern of the President
had their effect; Cl«ttysburg, Vicksburg, and Port
Hudson had had their effect; and the words and
deeds of the malcontent " Opposition " leaders had »1I
conspired to swell the Republican successes in the
fall of 1863. This election was a verdict in support
of the policy of the Administration, Emancipation
Proclamation, and all, and of the continuaooe of the
war until the Rebellion was overthrown. It also
pointed unmistakably to the utter defeat of the De-
mocmcy in the Presidential contest of 1864.
oyt^OO'^lc
ABBAHAld UNCOLN.
CHAPTER X.
1S63— WAR OF THE REBELLION— THE DEVELOPMENT OP
EMANCIPATION— THE EMANCIPATION PROCLA-
TION— MR. LINCOLN AND HIS DEED,
IN former chapters of these volumes the early
coarse of Mr. LidgoId's Administration io refer-
ence to slavery has heen given with sufficient full-
ness, perhaps ; and an effort has been made through-'
oat to omit nothing which would seem necessary to
convey an accurate idea of Mr. Lincoln's persontil
views and feelings, when entering upon the Presi-
dency, on this most important subject as related to
the crisis then reached in the Nation's history. That
he had no design of interfering with slavery in the
States where it existed, there can be no doubt. He
only hoped during his term of office to see it con-
fined within the bounds it then occupied, and the
original idea of its ultimate extinction in the Union
established as the sentiment of the country. This
was, indeed, the extent of the ambition of the Re-
publican leaderis. It was all they really desired or
hoped to accomplish. That there would be a long
and bloody war, which should make general and im-
mediate emancipation a national necessity, he never
believed, did not even think or dream it. And when
he entered upon his office, he and his Cabinet, and
ov Google
230 LIFE AND TIMB9 OF
the party leaders generally, made extraordioary ef-
forts to exhibit to the elavebolding and alreHdy re-
bellious quarter, their disposition to keep their himds
off the " institution." And long after the war had
begun the Administration seemed determined to let
slavery severely alone, the officers in the army
taking courses in dealing with it either in keeping
with their own sentiments, or with their views of
tbeprobable desires and intentions of the Adminis-
tration.
The Emancipntion Proclamation, and whatever
else Mr. Lincoln did for the destruction of slavery,
came out of the supposed necessities of the times, and
were the results of a gradual development of public
affairs. During the special session of Congress in
the sammer of 1861, there was displayed an evident
timidity on the part of the Republican leaders in ap-
proaching the subject of slavery, and only the more
bold of the old Abolitionists, like Owen Lovejoy,
ventured to touch the dangeroos theme at all. But
by the first of December, when Congress began to
assemble in regular session, public sentiment and ne-
cessity had prepared the way for action. Having
begun the work. Congress moved gradually forward
until the great national enemy was dead.
Probably Mr. Lincoln had never had the oppor-
tunity to do anything which gave him so much
gratification as the approving of the acts abolishing
slavery in the District of Columbia and prohibiting
slavery in all the Territories of the Nationj and cer-
tainly since the signing of the Declaration of Inde-
ovGoO'^lc
ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 231
pendence aod the adoption of the Constitution and
formntion of the Federal Government, no Americttii
bad had the opportanity to do so great an act. Still
he kept pace with Congress with much anxiety as to
the effect of his course. Never having been actuated
by the sentiments and motives of mere Abolitionism,
he was now mainly influenced at every step by the
single thought of defeating the rebels and saving the
Union. This he made the test of all his acta. He
lad no ambition to go down in history as the Great
Xiberator. Events made him do what he did, and
^et what he was thus enabled to become to his
country and to four millions of the colored race, gave
liim more satisfaction than it did any other man in
America.
General Dnvid Hunter issued the following orders .
«t Fort Pulaski and Hilton Head : —
"All persons of color lately held to involuntary serv-
ice by enemies of the United States, in Fort Pulaski, and.
«n Cookspur Island, Georgia, are hereby con6scated and
declared free, in conformity with law, and shall hereafter
receive the fruits of their own labor. Such of said persons
of color as are able-bodied, and may be required, shall
be employed in the Quartermaster's Department, at the
nte heretofore established by Brigadier-General W. T.
Sherman."
"lOBNBRAL ORDERS, NO. U.]
" The three States of Geot^ia, Florida, and South Car-
. olios, comprising the Military Department of the South,
having deliberately declared themselves no longer under
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232 LIFE AND TIHES OF
the piy)t«ction of the Ui)it«cl States of America, aod having
taken up arms against the said United States, it becomes
a military neoessity to declare them under martial law.
This was accordingly done on the 25th day of April, 1862.
Slavery and martial law, in a free country, are altogether
incompatible. The persons in these three States — Georgia,
Florida, and South Carolina — heretofore held as slaves,
are therefore declared forever free.
" Datid Hdkteb, Major-General Commanding.
"Official: Ed. W. Smith, Acting AsBlBtaot Adjotant-Ganeral."
Ten days after the date of this order, the Presi-
dent issued a proclamatioD, in which he revoked the
action of Qenenil Hunter in these words: —
" And WHEBBA8, The same is producing some excite-
ment and misunderstanding:
" TKerefore, I, Abraham Lincoln, President of the United
States, proclaim aod declare that the Government of the
United States had no knowledge or belief of an intention,
on the part of General Hunter, to issue such a proclama-
tion, nor has it yet any authentic information that the
document is genuine; and, further, that neither General
Hunter nor any other commander, or person, has been
anthorized by the Government of the United States to
make proclamation declaring the slaves of any State free,
and that the supposed proclamation now in question,
whether genuine or false, is altogether void, so &r as
respects such declanition.
"I further make known that, whether it be competent
for me, as Commander-in-Chief of the Army and Navy, to
declare the slaves of any State or States free, and whether,
at any time, or in any case, it shall have become a neces-
sity indiapeuHable to the maintenance of the Government
to exercise such supposed power, are questions whiob,
ander my responsibility, I reserve to myself, and which I
ovGoO'^lc
ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 233
can not f«el juetifled in leavipg to the decision of com-
manden in the field. These are totally different questions
from those of police regulations in armies and camps.
"On the sixth day of March last, by a special message,
I recommended to Congress the adoption of a joint reso-
lation, to be substantially as follows: —
"Reaolved, That the United States ought to co-operate
with any State which may adopt a gradnaJ abolishment of
slavery, giving to suoh State in its discretion to compen-
sate for the inconveniences, public and private, produced
by such change of system."
"The resolution, in the language above quoted, was
adopted by large majorities in both branches of Congress,
and now stands an authentic, definite, and solemn proposal
of the Nation to the States and people most immediately
interested in the subject-matter. To the people of these
States J now earnestly appeal, I do not argue; I beseech
you to make the arguftiente for yourselves. You can not,
if you would, be blind to the signs of the times. I beg
of you a calm and enlarged consideration of them, ranging,
if it may be, far above personal and partif<an politics.
This proposal makes common cause for a common object,
oasUng no reproaches upon any. It acts not the Pharisee.
The change it contemplates would come gently as the
dews of heaven, not rending or wrecking anything. Will
you not embrace it? So much good has not been done
by one effort in all past time, as, in the providence of
God, it is now your high privilege to do. May the vast
futnre not have lo lament that you have neglected it!
' " In witness whereof, I have hereunto set my hand
and caused the seal of the United States to be affixed.
" Done at the City of Washington, this nineteenth day
of May, in the year of our liord one thousand
eight hundred and sixty-two, and of the Inde-
pendence of the United States the eighty-sixth.
" Abraham Lincoln."
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1
2S4 LIFE AND TIMES OF
The President could not lose this opportunity to
make one more appeal in behalf of his scheme of
voluntary, gradual, compensated emancipation. His
fond hope was that the border States nt least would
accept the proposition. " The change it contemplates
would come gently as the dews of heaven, not rend-
ing or wrecking anything. Will yon not embrace it ?"
"Vain were such appeals. But they exhibit how
little Mr. Lincoln was yet prepared to enter upon the
expedient of arbitrary emancipntion ; but the neces-
sity of which he already began to see, could not long
be resisted.
About this time Mr. Lincoln made an earnest at-
tempt to interest the colored people in his plan of
starting a colony in New Oranada with the means
Congress had put at his disposal for that purpose.
On the 14th of August, 1862, he called some of the
more inielligent coloreil men to hear bim explain the
plnn and his reasons for it. He told them plainly
that the two races should live apart; that they
were not on equal terms with the whites, and there
WHS no probability of their being so; that they hud
no great reason for loving the white race ; that they
should look to their own interests; that he thought
it would be to the interests of both races for them to
seek a home to themselves. This he wanted to help
them do, and woold see to it that they should not be
wronged in any way. In this interview the President
treated them very kindly, and told them that in his
judgment their race was suffering the greatest wrong
which had ever been inflicted on any people.
ovGoO'^lc
ABRAHAM UNOOLN. 235
On the 19tli of August, Horace Greeley, a man of
no very great depth or correctness of judgment
on political and many other matters, printed in
"The Tribune" a long, and somewhat rude letter to
the President, in which Mr. Greeley berates him for
acquiescing in the unmilitary and inhuman orders of
Halleck and others as to slaves entering the Union
lines, find annulting the acts of others looking to the
fi-eedom of the slaves ; accusing him of being inBa-
enced by the opinions of men favorable to the in-
terests of slavery, and who were otherwise unsuitable
guides for times in need of measures so extraordinary
and vigorous ; notifying him that he was not carry-
ing out the laws of Congress, which was as little as
any Republican President could do in view of the
hopes and promises of his party ; and finally notify-
ing him, in the name of twenty millions of people, as
he claimed, that the way to crush the RebelUon was
to cmsh slavery. This liarangue the President saw
fit to ailswer in one of his most valuable and re-
markable letters as follows : —
"EXBCOTITI MANStON, WASHrNOTOK, 1
"August 22, 1862. f
" Hon. HoRicx Qbbiliy : —
"Dear Sib, — I have just read yoavK of the 19th
iDstaDt, addressed to myself through the Kew York
'Tribano.'
" If there be in it any statements or assumptionsof fact
which I may know to be erroneous, I do not dow and here
ooDtrovert them.
" If there be any inferences which I may believe to be
fidsely drawn, I do not now and here argue against them.
"If there be perceptible in it an impatient, diota-
ov Google
torial tone, I waive it in de
heart I have always siipi>oa
" As to the policy I ' set
I have not meant to leave
save the UnioQ. I would
under the Constitution.
" The sooner the nationa
Dearer the Union will be —
" If there be those who
less they could at the sami
agree with them.
" If there be those who
less they could at the same
agree with them.
" My paramount Qbgid
either to save or defray slave
" If I could save the Ui
I would do it; if I could si
I would do it; and if I cot
leaving others alone, I woul
" What I do abont slav
because I believe it helps ti
forbear, 1 forbear because ]
to save the Union.
"I shall do less whenev
doing hurts the canse, and
believe doing more will h
correct errors when shown i
new views so fast as they
" I have here stated n
official duty, and I intend
expressed personal wish tba
free. Your
Oa the 17th of July,
the bill providing for the
ovGoO'^lc
ABRAHAU UNOOLN. 237
the service of the army and navy, and the everlast-
ing freedom of the slaves of rebel masters so em-
ployed. Only a few days after this event the fol-
lowing orcler was sent out : —
" Wak Diparthent, Washinoton,!
" July 22, 1862. /
"Mrst. Ordered that military ootnnianders within the
States of Virginia, North Carolina, Georgia, Florida,
Alabama, Misaissippi, Louisiana, Texas, and Arkansas, in
ao orderly manner seise and use any property, real or per-
sonal, which, may be necessary or convenient for their
several commands, for supplies, or for other military pur-
poses; and that while property may be destroyed for
proper military objects, none shall be destroyed in wanton-
ness or malice.
"Second. That military and naval commanders shall
employ as laborers, within aud from said States, so many
persons of Afrioan descent as can be advantageously used
for military or naval purposes, giving them reasonable
wages for their labor.
" 7%ird. That, as to both property and persons of Af-
rican descent, accounts shall be kept sufficiently accurate
and in detail, to show quantities and amounts, aod from
whom both property and such persons shall have come,
on a basis upon which compensation can be made in
proper cases; and the several departments of this Govern-
ment shall attend to and perform their appropriate parts
towards the execution of these orders.
" By order of the President.
" Edwin M. Stanton, Secretary of War."
The President was evidently making some prog-
ress in the work of emancipation; more, indeed,
than this order indicated, or than those most ac-
quainted with his affairs knew. He was now plied
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238 LIFE ANt) TIMES OF
on the question from every source. The newspf^)ers
discussed the propriety tmd impropriety of a decla-
1-ation of uQiversal emancipatioD ; by individuals, and
committees, and ia every possible way, the subject
WHS brought to Mr. Lincoln's attention. Many men
for whose opinions he had respect, disagreed greatly
in their recommendations. He heard them all, and
sometimes as grave as the subject whs, with the ap-
pearance of considerable levity. He said to a dele-
gation of religious men from Illinois that no person
was more concerned about the issue of such a step
than he was, and if there was nny expression of the
will of Heaven, any Divine revelation about it, he
should be the recipient of it. If he knew the will
of Providence in the matter, he woujd readily carry
it out. But as the days c^ miracles seemed to be
passed, he would have to study the plain phyBical
facts of the case, ascerbiin what was possible, and
learn what appeared to be wise and right. In these
conversations Mr. Lincoln always managed to draw
out the arguments of bis visitors against his own
doubts. It had always been his way, when he could
do no better, to array against himself every possible
ai^ument which would seem in any way to throw
light or doubt on the course he contemplated or was
then taking. This he had already done over and
over again in reference to the matter of emancipation.
This was abont the only bit of philosophy there was
in Mr. Lincoln's composition. At all events, what-
ever may be said about his politics and anything else,
his religion was utterly void of philosophical "foundft*
ov Google
ABRAHAM UNCOLN. 239
tion, and never reached the dignity of being worthy
of the name even, antil he vent tg Washington and
was cut loose from the evil influences under which
he lived at Springfield. At Washington he became
the subject of the attentions and the prayera of the
pious and the good. By these things his natural
superstition was aroused to the highest degree of
friendliness toward them, and the result was a certain
religious development in his own life by which even
his best acquaintiinces were not a little deceived.
As early as the Ist of July, 1862, Mr. Lincoln
had begun to think seriously of immediately issuiog
his Emancipation Proclamation. And it has been
claimed that while going to or returning from his
visit to OeDernl McClellan at Harrison's Landing
early in July, he prepared the first draft of that cele-
brated paper. At any rate he .was ahead of Mr.
Oreeley in his demands for immediate action ; and
long before most of the earnest personal appeals were
made to him in the early autumn, he had decided
npon his course. The following is the first or pre-
liminary •
PBO(3LAMATI0N OF EMANCIPATION.
" I, Abraham Lincoln, President of the United States
of America, and Commander-in-Chief of the army and
navy thereof, do hereby proclaim and declare that here-
after, aa heretofore, the war will be prosecuted for the
object of practically restoring the Constitutional relation
between the United States and each of the States, and the
people thereof, in which States that relation is or may be
enepended or disturbed.
" ^at it is my purpose, upon the next meeting of
ov Google
1
S40 UFB AUD TIMES OF
CoDgreoB, to agalo reoommend the adoption of a practical
measure tendering pecuniary aid to the free acceptance or
rejection of all Slave StateA so-called, the people whereof
may not then be in rebellion against the United States, and
which States roav then have voluntarily adopted, or there-
after may volnntarily adopt, immediate or gradual abolish-
ment of slavery within their respective limits; and that
the effort to colonize persons of African descent, with
their consent, upon this continent or elsewhere, with the
previously obtained consent of the government existing
there, will be continued.
" That OD the 1st day of January, in the year of our
Lord one thousand eight hundred and sixty-three, all per-
sons held as slaves within any State, or designated part
of a State, the people whereof shall then be in- rebellion
against the United States, shall be then, thenceforward,
and forever free ; and the Executive Government of the
United States, including the military and naval authority
thereof, will recognize and maintain the freedom of such
persons, and will do no act or acts to repress such persons,
or any of them, in any efforts they may make for their
actual freedom.
" That the Executive will, on the 1st day of January
aforesaid, by proclamation, designate the States or parts
of States, if any, in which the people thereof respectively
shall then be in rebellion agaiust the United States; and
the &ct that any State, or the people thereof, shall on that
day be in good faith represented in the Congress of the
United States, by members chosen thereto at elections
wherein a majority of the qualified voters of such State
shall have participated, shall, in the absence of strong
countervailing testimony, be deemed coDclueive evidence
that such State, and the people thereof, are not then in re-
bellion against the United States.
" That attention is hereby called to an act of -Congress
entitled 'An Act to make an additional Article of War,'
ovGoO'^lc
ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 241
approved Maroh 13, 1862, and which Act ia In the words
and figares following .-
"Be it eaaded by the Senate and House of Represeniativea
of the United Staiea of Atneriea in Chngreaa assembled,
That hereafter the followiag shall be promulgated as an
additiooal article of war for the government of the army
of the United States, and shall be obeyed and observed
as such :
"Abticle. — All officers or persons in the military or
naval service of the United States are prohibited from
employing any of the fbroes nnder their respective com-
mands for the piirpose of returning fugitives from service
or labor who may have escaped from any person to whom
Booh service or labor is claimed to be due; and any officer
who shall be found guilty by a court-martial of violating
this article shall be dismissed from the service.
" Sec, 2. And be U farther enacted, That this act shall
take effect from and after its passage.
"Also, to the ninth and tenth sections of an act en-
titled 'An Act to suppress insurrection, to punish treason
iuid rebellion, to seize and confiscate property of rebels,
and &T other purposes," approved July 16, 1862, and
which sections are in the words and figures following :
" Sec. 9. And be U further enaded. That all slaves of
persons who shall hereaft«r be engaged in rebellion against
the Government of the United States, or who shall in any
way give aid or comfort thereto, escaping from such per-
sons and taking refuge within the lines of the army ; and
all slaves captured from such persons, or deserted by them
and coming under the control of the Government of the
United States ; and all slaves of such persons found on (or)
being within any place occupied by rebel forces and after-
ward occupied by forces of the United States, shall be
deemed captives of war, and shall be forever free of their
servitude, and not again held as slaves.
"Sec. 10. And be ii farther enaeted, That no slave
18-<»
:b,GOO'^IC
242 LIFE AND TIMES OF
aeoapiDg into auy State, Territoty, or the District of Co-
lumbia, from any other State, ehall be delivered up, or in
any way impeded or hindered of his liberty, except for
Clime, or some offense against the laws, unless the person
claiming said fugitive shall first make oath that the person
to whom the labor or service of such fugitive is alleged
to be due is his lawful owner, and has not borne arms
against the United States in the present Hebetlion, nor in
any way given aid and comfort thereto ; and no persoD
engaged in the military or naval service of the United
States shall, under any pretense whatever, assume to
decide on the validity of the claim of any person to the
service or labor of any other person, or surrender up any
soch person to the claimant, on pain of being dismiasad
from the servioe.
"And I do hereby enjoin upon and order all persona
engaged in the military and naval service of the United
States to observe, obey, and enforce, within their respective-
spheres of servioe, the act and sections above recited.
"And the Executive will in due time recommend that
all citizens of the United States who shall have remained
loyal thereto throughout the Rebellion, shall (upon the-
resto ration of the Constitutional relation between the
United States and their respective States and people, if
that relation shall have been suspended or disturbed) be
compensated for all losses by acte of the United States,
including the loss of slaves.
" In witness whereof, I have hereunto set my hand
and caused the seal of the United States to be affixed.
"Done at the City of Washington, this twenty-second
day of September, in the year of our Lord one
thousand eight hundred and sixty-two, and of the
Indepeodenoe of the United States the eighth-
seventh. Abbaham Lincoln.
" By the President :
" Wm. H. Siwabd, 8ecreta77 of State."
ovGoo'^le
ABRAHAM LIN(X)LH. 243
F. B. Carpenter, the artist friend of Mr. Lincoln,
lias given this account of this proclamation : —
'"It had got to be,' stud be, 'midsummer, 1662. Things
had goDe on from bad to worse, until I felt that ve bad reacbed
the end of our rope on the plan of operations we bad been pnr-
aoing; that we had about plajed our last card, and must
change our tactics, or lose the game I I now determined upon
the adoption of the emancipation policy ; and, without consulta-
tion with, or the knowledge of the Cabinet, I prepared the
original draft of the proclamation, and, after much aaxious
thought, called a Cabinet meeting upon the subject. This was
tba last of July, or the first part of the month of August, 1862.'
(The exact date he did not remember.) ' This Cabinet meeting
took phice, I think, upon a Saturday. All were presoit, ex-
cepting Mr. Blair, the Post master-General, who was absent at
the opening of the diacustnon, but came in subsequently. I
said to the Cabinet that I had resolved upon this step, and had
not called them together to ask their advice, but to lay the
subject-matter of a proclamation before them ; suggesdons as to
which would be in order, after they had heard it read. Mr.
Lovejoy,' said he, ' was in error when he informed you that
it excited no comment, excepting on the part of Secretary
Seward. Various suggestions were offered. Secretary Chase
wished the language stronger in reference to the arming of the
blacks. Mr. Blair, afUr he came in, deprecated the policy, on
the ground that it would cost the Administration the &11 elec*
tiona Nothing, however, was ofiered that I had not already
fully anticipated and settled in my own mind, until Secretary
Seward spoke. He said in substance: "Mr. President, I ap-
prove of the proclamation, but I queetioD the expediency of its
issue at this juncture. The depresuoo of the pabli6 mind, con-
sequent upon our repeated reverses, is so great that I fear the
effect of BO important a step. It may be viewed as the last
measure of an exhausted government, a cry for help; the
Government stretching forth its bands to Ethiopia, instead of
Ethiopia stretohing forth her hands to the Gtovemment." His
ides,' said the Preedent, ' was that it would be considered our
Jaat ikriA, on the retreat' (This was his precvK expreasionj
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244 LIFE AND TIMES OF
' ' ' yow," coDtinued Mr. Seward, ' ' whQe I approve the meanire,
I Buggeet, sir, that you postpone its issue, until you can give it
to the country supported by military success, instead of issuing
it, aa would be the case now, upon the greatest disasters of the
war!"' Mr. Lincoln continued: 'The wisdom of the view of
the Secretary of State struck me with very great force. It was
an aspect of the case that, in all my thought upon the subject,
I had entirely overlooked. The result was that I put the dnft
of the Proclamation aside, aa you do your sketch for a ptcture,
waiting for a victory. From time to time I added or changed
a line, touching it ap here and there, anxiously watching the
progress of events. Well, the next news we had was of Pope's
disaster, at Bull Run. Things looked darker than ever. Fi-
nally, catne the week of the battle of Antietam. i determined
to wait DO longer. The news came, I think, on Wednesday,
that the advantage was on our side. I was then staying at the
Soldiers' Home (three miles out of Washington). Here I fin-
ished writing the second draft of the preliminary Proclamation ;
came up on Saturday; called the Cabmet together to hear it,
and it was published the following Monday.'
" At the final meeting of September 20th, another interest-
ing incident occurred in connection with Secretary Seward,
The President had written tiie important put of the Proclama-
tion in these words: —
' " That, on the first day of January, in the year of our
Lord one thousand eight hundred and sixty-three, all persons
held as slaves within any State or designated part of a State,
the people whereof shall then be in rebellion against the United
States, shall be then, thenceforward, and forever free; and the
Executive Government of the United States, including the mil-
itary and naval authority thereof, will reeognwe the fi-eedom of
such persons, and will do no act or acts to repress such persons,
or any of them, in any e^rta they may make for their actual
freedom.'
" When I finished reading this paragraph,' reeamed Mr.
Lincoln, 'Mr. Seward stopped me, and said: "I think, Mr.
President, that you should insert after the word 'reeogniee,' in
that sentence, the words 'and maintam."' I replied that I had
already fully considered the import of that expreesiim in this
ovGoO'^lc
ABBAHAM UNCOUT. 24d
ooDtiection, but I bad not introdnced it became it was not my
way to promise what I was Dot entirely more that I could per-
form, and I was not prepared to say (bat I thoDght we were
exactly able to "maintain" tbis.'
"'But,' said he, 'Seward insieted that we ought to take
this ground ; and the words finally went in I'
"'It is a eomewhat remarkable foct,' be subsequently re-
marked, ' that there were just one hundred days between the
dates of the two proclamations issued upon the 22d of Septem-
ber and the let of January. I had not made the calcnladon
at tbe time.'
"Having concluded this interesting statemeot, the President
then proceeded to show me the vanoue positions occupied by
himself and tfae difierent members of the Cabinet, on -tiie occa-
sion of the first meeting. ' As nearly as I remember,' said he,
'I sat near the head of the table; the Secretary of the Treaaniy
and the Secretary of War were, here, at my right hand; the
others were grouped at the left/ , ■ ,
"In February last, a few days aHer the passage of the
' Constitutional Amendment/ I was in Washington, and was
received by Mr. Lincoln with the kindness and &miliarity
which bad characterized our previous intercourse. I said to
him one day that I was very proud to have been the artist to
have first conceived of the design of painting a picture com-
memoradve of the Act of Emancipation ; that subsequent oc-
currences had only confirmed my own first judgment of that
act as the most sublime moral event in our history. 'Yes,
stud he, and never do I remember to have noticed in him more
earnestness of expresdon or manner, 'as <^avn have i/umed, it i»
the eeniral ael of my AdmimetroHon and the great event of the nine-
teenlh eentitry,'
" I remember to have asked him, on one occasion, if there
was not some oppodtion manifested on the part of several mem-
bers of the Cabinet to the emancipation policy. He eaid, in
reply: 'Nothing more than I have stated to you. Mr. Blair
thought we should lose the fall elections, and opposed it on
that ground only.' Said I: 'I have understood that Secretary
Smith was not in &vor of your. action. Mr. Blair told me
tliat, when the meeting closed, he and the Secretary of the Inte-
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246 LIFE AND TIMES OF
rioT went sway together, and tfa«t the latter told him, if the
Preddent carried out that policy, he might count on losing Jn-
diam, sural' ' He never said anything of tlie kind to me,' re-
turned the Preaident. ' And how,' said I, ' does Mr. Blair feel
about it nowf 'O,' was the prompt reply, 'he proved right
in r^ard to the fall electiooB, but be is satiefied that we have
since gained more than we loeL' 'I have been told,' aaid I,
< that Judge Bates doubted tlie Gwstitntionality of the Procla-
mation,' ' He never expressed such an opinion in my hearing,'
replied Mr. I^coln. 'No member of the Cabinet ever die-
sented from the policy, in any conversation with me.' "
At last the final act, known in histoiy as the
BmaDcipation ProclamatioD, appeared as follows, ao-
cording to promise, on the first day of the new
year : —
EMANCIPATION PBOOLAMA'nON.
" Whereas, On the twenty-seoond day of September,
in the year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and
sixty-two, a proclamation was issued by the President of
the United States, containing, among other things, the fol-
lowing, to wit:
" That on the first day of January, in the year of oor
Lord one thousand eight hundred and sixty-three, all
persons held as slavey within any States or deeigoated
part of a State, the people whereof shall then be in re-
bellion against the United States, shall be then, thenoefbr-
ward, and forever free; and the Executive Government of
the United States, including the military and naval
authority thereof, will recognize and maintain the ft«edom
of sach persons, and will do no act or acts to repress such
persons, or any of them, in any efforts they may make for
their actual freedom :
" That the Executive will, on the first day of January
aforesaid, by proclamation, designate the States and parts
of States, if any, in which the people thereof respectively
:b,GOO'^IC
ASBAHAM LINCOLN. 247
ehftll then be in rebellion against the Unitecl States; and
tiie fiict that luiy State, or the people thereof, shall on that
day be in good fkith represented in the Congr^s of the
United States, by members chosen thereto at elections
wherein a majority of the qualified voters of such State
shall have participated, shall, in the absence of strong
conntervailing testimony, he deemed conclusive evidence
that such Stat«, and the people thereof, are not then in
rebellion against the United States :
"Now, therefore, I, Abraham Lincoln, President of the
United States, by virtue of the power in me vested as
Commander-in-Chief of the Army and Kavy of the United
States in time of actual armed rebellion f^inst the
aathority and Government of the United States, and as a
fit and necessary war measure for suppressiog said rebell-
ion, do, on this first day of January, in the year of our
Lord one thousand eight hundred and sixty>three, and in
aocordaace with my purpose so to do, publicly proclaimed
for the full period of one hundred days, irom the day first
above mentioned, order and designate as the States and
parts of States wherein the people thereof respectively are
this day in rebellion t^inst the United States, the follow-
ing, to wit ;
" Arkansas, Texas, Louisiana (except the parishes of
St. Bernard, Plaquemines, Jefferson, St. John, St. Charles,
St. James, Ascension, Assumption, Terre Bonne, La-
iburche, Ste. Marie, St. Martin, and Orleans, including the
city of New Orleans), Mississippi, Alabama, Florida,
Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina, and Virginia
(except the forty-eight counties designated as West Vir-
ginia; and also the counties of .Berkeley, Accomack,
Northampton, Elizabeth City, York, Princess Anne, and
Norfolk, including the cities of Norfolk and Portsmouth),
and which excepted parts are for the present left precisely
as if this Proclamation were not issued.
"And by virtue of the power and for the purpose
ovGoO'^lc
248 LIFE AND TIMES OF
aforesaid, I do order and declare that all persons held as
slaves within said designated States and parts of States
are, and henceforward shall be, fi-ee ; and that the Ezeoa-
tive Grovernment of the United States, including the mili-
tary and naval authorities thereof, will recognize and
maintain the freedom of said persons.
" And I hereby enjoin upon the people bo declared to
be free, to abstain from all violence, unless in necessary
self-defense ; and I recommend to them that, in all cases
when allowed, they labor faithfully for reasonable wages.
" And I further declare and make known that such
persons, of suitable oondition, will be received into the
armed service of the United States to garrison forts, posi-
UoDs, stations, and other places, and to man vessels of all
sorts in said service.
" And upon this act, sincerely believed to be an act of
justice, warranted by the Constitution upon military
necessity, I invoke the considerate judgment of mankind,
and the gracious favor of Almighty God.
" In testimony whereof, I have hereunto set my name,
and caused the seal of the United States to be afiBxed.
" Done at the City of Washington, this first day of
January, in the year of our Lord one thousand
eight hundred and sixty-three, and of the Inde-
pendence of the United States of America the
eighty-seventh.
" By the President : ABRAHiM Lincoln.
"Wm. H. Sew AM), Secretary ot State."
One of Mr. Lincoln's most faithful friends thoB
describes the signing of the proclamation : —
" The roll containing the Emancipation Proclamation
was taken to Mr. Lincoln at noon on the first day of Jan-
uary, 1863, by Secretary Seward and his son, Frederick.
As it lay unrolled before him, Mr. Lincoln took a pen,
dipped it in ink, moved his hand to the place for the
ov Google
ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 249
si^atare, held it a moment, and then removed his hand
and dropped the pen. After a little hesitation he again
took np the pen and went through the same movement as
before. Mr. Lincoln then turned to Mr. Seward and said :
' I have been shaking hands since nioe o'clock this morn-
ing, and my right arm is almost paralyzed. If my name
ever goes into history, it will be for this act, and my
whole soul is in it. If my hand trembles when I sign the
Proclamation, all who examine the document hereafter,
will say, "He hesitated.'" He then tamed to the table,
took np the pen again, and slowly, firmly wrote that
'Abraham Lincoln' with which the whole world is now
familiar. He looked up, smiled, and said : ' That
will do.' '*
The original draft of this paper all in Mr. Lin-
coln's own handwriting except, perhaps, a few words
interlined by Mr. Seward, was bought for the use of
the Sanitary Commission at its fair in Chicago in the
fall of 1863. Afterwards the President was re-
quested to sign duplicates which he did ; and these
were sold for the benefit of the Sanitary Fairs in
1864. Some of them were placed in various public
institutions, and one, it is said, occupies a con-
spicuous place in the Library of the British Museum
in London.
Mr. Chase presented to the President a paper
containing what he viewed as the proper substance
of the Proclamation. The last sentence of this Mr.
Lincoln adopted, with a slight change, being the clos-
ing paragraph of the Proclamation — ''And upon this
act, believed to be an act of justice, warranted by
the Ooufltitution upon military necessity, I invoke
:b,GoO'^lc
260 UF£ AND TIUES OF
the considerate jndgmeat of mankind and the gra^
cious favor of Almighty God." OtherwiEe there was
litUe modification of the President's original drafts
even this scarcely deserving notice. Long before it
waa known to his Cabinet and friends, Mr. Lincoln
had written the introductory proclamation of Sep-
tember 22, 1862, and to him alone belongs the credit
of the entire writing, and the great act. That he
had examined the whole subject in all its bearings,
in its effects at home and abroad, upon the friends
of the Union and the rebels and their aiders and
abettors in the North, there can be no doubt.
In a letter to A. G. Hodges, of Frankfort, Ken-
tucky, dated April 4, 1864, Mr. Lincoln gives the
best possible exposition of his motives for this act,
and the principles which governed him throughout.
This is one of his most memorable letters, and is as
follows : —
"Mt Dear Srs, — ^Tou ask me to put in writing the
substance of what I verbally aaid the other day in your
presence to Governor Bramlette and Senator Dixon. It
waa as follows: —
" I am naturqlly anti-slaveiy. If slavery is not wrong,
nothing is wrong. I can not remember when I did not
80 think and feel, and yet I have never understood that
the Ppesidency conferred upon me an nnrestricted right to
act officially upon this judgment and feeling. It was in
the oath I took that I would, to the best of my ability,
preserve, protect, and defend the Constitution of the
United States. I could not take the office without taking
the oath. Nor was it my view that I might take an oath
to get power, and bi^ak the oath in uung the power. I
ovGoO'^lc
ABRAHAM IJNCOLH. 251
Bnderstood, too, that m ordinary civil adminiBtraldoii tiat
oath even forbade me to practically indulge my primary
abetraot judgment on the moral question of slavery. I
had publicly declared this many timee, and in many ways.
And i aver that, to this day, I have done no official act
in mere deference to my abstract judgment and feeling on
slavery.
"I did nnderstaDd, however, that the very oath to
preserve the Constitution to the ttest of my ability im-
posed upon me the duty of preserving, by every indis-
peusable means, that Gioveninient, that Nation of which
tiiat Constitution was the organic law. Was it possible to
lose the Nation and yet preserve the Constitution ? By
general law, life and limb must be protected; yet oflen a
limb must be amputated to save a life; but a life is never
wisely given to save a limb. I felt that measures, other-
wise unconstitutional, might become lawful by becoming
indispensable to the preservation of the Constitution
through the preservation of the Nation. Right or wrong,
I assumed this ground, and now avow it. I could not
feel that, to the best of my ability, I bad even tried to
preserve the Constitution, if to preserve slavery, or any
minor matter, I should permit the wreck of Government,
country, and Constitution altogether. When, early in the
war. General Fremont attempted military emancip:ition, I
forbade it, because I did not then think it an indispensa-
ble necessity. When, a little later, General Cameron,
then Secretary of War, suggested the arming of the blacks,.
I objected, because I did not yet think it an indispensable
seceesity. When, still later. General Hunter attempted
military emancipation, I again forbade it, because T did
not yet think the Indispensable necessity had come. When,
in March, and May, and Jnly, 1862, I made earnest and
mccessive appeals to the border States to favor compen-
sated emancipation, I believed the indispensable necessity
for military emancipation and arming the blacks would
ov Google
262 UFE AND TIMES OF
come, onleBs averted by that measure. They declined the
propositioD, and I was, in my best jndgment, driven to
the alternative of either sarrendertDg the Unioo, and with
it the Constitutios, or of laying strong band upon the col-
ored element. I choae the latter!
" In choosing it, I hoped for greater gain than loss,
but of this I was not entirely confident. More than a
year's trial now shows no loss by it, in our foreign rela-
tions; none in our home popular sentiment; none in our
white military force — no loss by it anyhow or anywhere.
On the contrary, it shows a gain of quite a hundred and
thirty thousand soldiers, teamen, and laborers. These are
palpable &cts, about which, as &cts, there can be no cavil-
ing. We have the men, and we could not have bad them
without the measure.
" And now, let any Union man who complains of the
measure, test himself by writing down in one line that he
is for subduing the Rebellion by force of arms, and in the
next that he is for taking this one hundred and thirty
. thousand men from the Union side, and placing them
where they would be, but for the measure he condemns.
If he can not face bis cause so stated, it is only because
he can not &ce the truth.
" I add a word, which was not in the verbal conversa-
tion. In telling this tale, I attempt no compliment to
ray own sagacity, I claim not to have controlled events,
but confess plainly that events have controlled me. Now,
,at the end of three years' straggle, the Nation's condition
is not what either party or any man devised or expected.
God alone can claim it. Where it is tending, seems plain.
If God now wills the removal of a great wrong, and wills
also that we of the North, as well as you of the South,
shall pay fairly for our complicity in that wrong, impartial
history will find therein new cause to attest and revere
the justice and goodness of God.
"Tours truly, A. Lincoln."
ovGoO'^lc
ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 253
So it happened that Mr. Lincohi, who at the oat-
set bad said ia reference to interfering with slavery
in the States, " I believe I have no lawful right, and
I have DO Intention to do so," bad gradually come
to believe hia interference with slavery necessary to
preserve the Union, and had come to avow openly
and defend the steps by which he had reached this
position, and all the consequences of his acts.
The record is far above sospicion. If Mr. Lin-
cohi had departed from his original intentions, he
had done so honestly. It was no fault of his. He
had vainly tried to control events. They had led
him, and in the religious feiTor which bad, to some
extent, displaced his former tendencies, he now held
that Deity was at the back of it all, and must have
the honmr.
^he country was, for a time, greatly divided as
to the good and evil which might spring from the
Emancipation Proclamation. The Democrats said it
would fall harmlessly to the dust. But it greatly
irritated them at any rate, especially those who be-
lieved their political ascendency could only be re-
covered and maintained somehow by the South.
Many good and wise Union men were uncertain and
uneasy about it. Darkness was before them. TUm
was a bold, fearful leap the President bad taken.
The rebels pretended to hold the Proclamation in
contempt; still it alarmed them, and called out the
spirit of the direst vengeance. The effect of the
Proclamation in Enrope was favorable to the cause
of tiie Government, and long before the Presidential
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354 LIFE AND TIMES OF
election in the fall of 1864, the loyal North had come to-
view it with the President's eyes, to a great extent.
Its virtue had already been well attested. The bit-
ter opposition long apparent in the army to the em-
ployment of colored soldiers had passed away, and
the strong selfish feeling of having the negro bear
any possible amount of the brunt and hardship of the
war, which never would have been but for him, took
the place, even there, of the former drivel about ne-
gro '^eqnality" with the white man by placing a
musket in his hand. And although various motives,
not always creditable, led the loyal people of the
North to give a hearty support finidly to the emanoi-^
pation policy and all that followed from it, in the
main they were actuated by the one grand, noble
sentiment of elevating a downtrodden race, of better-
ing the condition of a large part of their own, of sav-
ing the G-ovemment which they believed to be the
best ever achieved by enlightened man, and of re-
moving from it, while they had an opportunity and a
ground for so doing, the only apparent or probable or
possible instrument of its downfall. So the deed was
accomplished, and long ago from all civilized nations
but one voice has arisen concerning it. Even in
America to-day it can hardly be maintained that there
is a divided sentiment about the emancipation of the
four millions of slaves. It was the great achievement
of Mr. Lincoln's Administration. By it, but certainly
not wholly so, does he take his place in history, as he
believed he should. After the establishment of the
Republic it was the greatest event which ever took
:b,GOO'^IC
UHOOLN. 255
it was not the first in its
; and among the grand
achievements of human justice, progress, and govem-
ment, it must ever be conspicuous.
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LIFE ASD TIMES OF
IJHARTKR XI.
REBELLION— CONGRESS IN THE WINTER
ND ANNUAL MESSAGE— WEST VIR-
GINIA—AN ERROR.
ay of December Congress assembled
in of 'the "Thirty-seventh Con-
he same day the President sent to
ND ANNUAL MESSAGE.
IB SiNATB AND HoCBX OF RcPBiaKNTATinS : —
annual aseembling, another year of he<h
eats has paeeed. And while it has not
ty to bless us with a return of peace, we
ided by the best light be ^ves us, trusting
[ time and wise way, all will yet be well,
ice touchiDg &reign afiiura which has taken
iBt year is herewith submitted, in virtual
questi to that edect made by the House of
the close of the last session of Congress,
of our relations with other nations is less
8 usually been at former periods, it is cei^
)ry than a Nation so unhappily distracted
sooably have apprehended. In the month
are some grounds to expect that the mari-
\t the beginning of our domestic difficulties,
mecessarily, as we think, recognized the
jerent, would soon recede from that poei-
ed only less injurious to themselvea than to
tut the temporary reverses which afterwards
irms, and which were exa^erated by our
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ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 257
own disloyal dtixem abroad, have hitherto delayed that act of
simple justice.
The Civil War, which has eo radically changed, for tlie mi>-
meDt, the occopatjone and babita of the American people, hae
neceeaarily disturbed the social condition, and affected very
deeply the prosperity of the nations with which we have carried
on a commerce that has been steadily increasing throughout a
pwiod of half a century. It has, at the aame time, excited
political ambitdoos and apprehennons which have produced a
profound agitadon throughout the civilized world. In this
nnuaoal agitation we have forborne from taking part in any
coDtroversy between foreign states, and between parties or
factions in such states. We have attempted no propagandism,
and acknowledged no revolution. But we have left to every
nation the exclufflve conduct and management of its own o^rs.
Our'stru^le has been, of course, contemplated by foreign
nations with reference less to its own merits than to its sup-
posed and often exaggerated effects and consequences resulting
to Uioee nations themselves, Nevertheless, complaint on the
part of this Government, even if it were just, would certainly
be unwise.
The treaty with Great Britain for the suppresnon of the
dave-trade has been put into operation with a good prospect of
complete success. It is an occasion of special pleasure to ac-
knowledge that the execution of it, on the port of her majesty's
govemment, has been marked with a jealous respect for the
authority of the United States, and the rights of their moral
and loyal citizeDs.
The convention with Hanover for the abolition of the State
dues has been carried into full effect, under the Act of Congress
for that purpose.
A blockade of three thousand miles of sea-coast could not
be established, and vigorously enforced, in a season of great
commercial activity like the present, without committing occa-
sional mistakes and inflicting unintentional injuries upon foreign
nations and th^r subjects.
A civU war occurring in a country where foreigners rende
and carry on trade nnder treaty stipulations, is necesaarily
fruitful of complunts of the violation of neutral rights. All
IT— «
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268 LIFE AND TIMES OP
guch collisions tend to ezdte misapprebeomons, and pooBibly to
produce mutual reclamatioDs between nations which have a
common interest in preserving peace and frieadshiph In clear
cases of these kinds I have, so &jr ae possible, heard and re-
dressed complaints which have been presented by friendly
powers. There is sdll, hovever, a large and an augmenting
number of doubtful cases upon which the Qovernment is unable
to agree with the goTernments whose protection is demanded by
the claimants. There are, moreover, many cases in which the
United States, or Uieur oitizeas, eufhr wrongs from the naval or
military authorities of foreign nations, which the govemmenta
of those states are not at once prepared to redress. I have
proposed to some of the foreign states, thus interested, mutual
conventions to examine and adjust such oomplaiate. This
propouuou has been mode especially to Great Britain, to
France, to Spain, and to PnisNa. In eadi case it has beea
kindly received, but has not yet been formally adopted.
I deem it my duty to recommend an appropriation in behalf
of the owners of the Norwegian bark, Admital P. Ibrdenddold,
which vessel was, in May, 1861, prevented by the commander
of the blockading force off Charleston from 'eaving that port
with cargo, notwithstanding a similar privilege had shortly be-
fore been granted to an English vessel. I have directed tha
Secretary of State to cause the papers in the case to be com-
municated to the proper committees.
Applications have been made to me by many free Americans
of African descent to &vor their emigration, with a view to sueh
colouization as was contemplated in recent acta of Congress.
Other parties at home and abroad, some from interested mo-
Jives, others upon patriotic considerations, and still others in-
duenced by philanUiropic sentiments, have suggested similar
measures; while, on the other hand, several of the Spanish-
American republics have protested against the sending of such
colonies to their respective territories. Under these circum-
stances I have declined to move any such colony to any state
without first obtaining the consent of its government, with an
agreement on its part to receive and protect such emigrants in
all the rights of freemen ; and I have at the same time ot&red
to the several Btat«s ^tuated within ^e tropics, or having c<d-
ovGoo'^lc
ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 259
onies there, to negotiate vith them, subject to the advice and
Gonwnt of the Senate, to &vor the voluntary emigration of per-
SODS of that clasB to their respective territories, upon conditions
vhtch shall be equal, just, and humane. Liberia and Hayti
are, as yet, the only countries to which colonists of African
descent from here, could go with certainty of being received
and adopted as citizens ; and I regret to say such persons, con-
templatJDg coloniiation, do not seem so willing to migrate to
those, conn tries as to some others, nor so willing as I think their
interest demands. I believe, however, o[Hnion among them in
this respect, is improving; and that, erelong, there will be an
augmented, and considerable migration to both these countries,
from the United States-
The new commercial treaty between the United States at>d
the Sultan of Turkey has been carried into ezeeu^on.
A commercial and consular treaty baa been negotiated, sub-
ject to the Senate's consent, with Liberia; and a similar nego-
tiation is now pending with the Republic of Hayti. A consider-
able improvement of the national commerce is expected to re>
suit from these measures.
Our relatfons with Great Britain, France, Spain, Portugal,
Rnsia, Prussia, Denmark, Sweden, Austria, the Netherlands,
Italy, Rome, and the other European Slates, remain undis-
turbed. Very iavorable relations also continue. to be main-
luned with Turkey, Morocco, China, and Japan.
During the last year there has not only been so change of
onr previous relations with the independent States of our own
continent, but more friendly sentiments than have heretofore
existed, are believed to be entertained by these neighbors,
whose safety and progress are so intimately connected with our
own. This statement especially applies to Mexico, Nicaragua,
Costa Rica, Honduras, Peru, and Chili.
The commission under the convention with ^e JRepublic of
New Granada closed its session without having audited and
passed upon all the claims which were submitted to it. A
proposition is pending to revive the convention, that it may be
able to do more corapleto justice. The Joint Commission be-
tween the United States and the Republic of Costa Rica has
completed i(e labors and submitted its report.
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260 LIFE AND TIMES OF
I have lavored the project for connecting the United BtatM
with Europe by an AtUntic telegnph, and a similar project to
extend the telegraph from San fVanciaoo, to connect by a
Padfic tel^raph with the line which is being extended acroas
the Ruaaian empire.
The Territories of the United States, with nnimportant ex-
ceptions, have remained undisturbed by the Civil War ; and they
are exhibitiDg such evidence of prosperity as justifies an ex-
pectation that some of them will soon be in a condition to be
organized as States, and be Constitutionally admitted into the
Federal Union.
The immense mineral reeonrcee of some of those Territories
ought to be developed as rapidly as possible. Every step in
that direction would have a tendency to improve the revenues
of the Government, and dimini^ the hardens of the people.
It is worthy of your eeriaus consideration whether some extraoi^
dinary measuree to promote that end can not be adopted.
The means which suggests iteelf as most likely to be efl'ective, ia
a scientific exploration of the mineral regions in tboee Territories,
with a view to the publication of its reaulte at home and in
foreign countries ; results which can not fitil to be auspicioas.
The condition of the finances will claim your most diligent
consideration. The vast expenditures incident to the military
and naval operations required for the suppression of the Re-
beUion, have hitherto been met with a promptitude and oer-
tunty unusual in nmilar circnmstanoes ; and the public credit
has been fully maintwned. The continuance of the war, how-
ever, and the increased disbursements made necessary by the
augmented forces now in the field, demand your best reflections
as to the best modes of providing the necessary revenue, with-
out injury to budneas, and with the least possible burdens
upon labor.
The suspension of specie payments by the banks, soon after
the commencement of your last session, made large issues of
United States notes unavoidable. In no other way could the
payment of the troops, and the satisfaction of other just de- *
mands, be so economically or so well provided for. ^e judi-
cious legislation of Congress, securing the receivability of these
Dotea for loans and internal duties, and making them a legal
ovGoO'^lc
ABRAHAM UNCOLN. 261
tender for other debts, baa made tbem a universal curreocy;
and has aatiafied, partially, at least, and for the time, the long-
feit want of a uniform circulating medium, saving thereby
to the people immense sums in discounts and exchanges.
A return to specie payments, however, at the earliest period
compaUble with due regard to all interests concerned, should
ever be kept in view. Fluctuations in the vajue of currency
are always injurious, and to reduce these fluctuations to the
lovest possible point will always be a leading purpose in wise
legislation. Convertibility, prompt and certain convertibility
into coin, is generally acknowledged to be the beat and surest
safeguard against them ; and it is extremely doubtful whether
a ctrcutation of United States notes, payable in coin, and
snffidendy large for the wants of tbe people, can be perma-
nently, usefully, and safely maintained.
Is there, then, any other mode in which*tiie necessary pro-
vision for tbe public wants can be made, and the great ad-
vantages of a safe and uniform currency secured?
I know of none which promises so certain results, and is at
the same time so unobjectionable, as the oi^anization of bank-
ing associations under a general act of Congress, well guarded
in its provisions. To such asBociatioos the Qovemment might
furnish circulating notes, on the security of United States
bonds deposited in the treasury, lliese notes, prepared under
the supervidon of proper officers, being uniform in appearance
and security, and convertible always into coin, would at once
protect labor against the evils of a vicious currency, and facil-
itate commerce by cheap and safe exchanges.
A moderate reservation from the interest on tbe bonds
would compensate the United States for the preparation and
distribution of tbe notes and a general supervirion of the sys-
tem, and would lighten tbe faurdea of that part of tbe public
debt employed as securities. The public credit, moreover,
would be greatly improved, and the negotiation of new loans
greatiy facilitated, by the steady market demand for Government
bonds which the adoption of the proposed system would create.
It is an additional recommendation of tbe measure, of con-
siderable weight, in my judgment, that it would reconcile, as
&r as possible, all existing interests, by the opportunity offered
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282 LIFE AKD TIMES OF
to insdtutioDi to reorganiEe uoder the act, substitating only tb«
secured uniform DutioDal circulaUon for the looal aod various
circuiatioD, secured aod unsecured, now iasued by them.
The receipts into the treasury from all sources, including
loans, and balance from the preceding year, for the fiscal year
ending on the 30th June, 1862, were «583,885,247.06, of
which sum $49,^,397.62 were derived from customs; $1,795,-
331.73 from the direct tax ; from public lands, $162,203.77 ;
from miscellaneous souroes, 1931,787.64; from loans lu all
forme, 1529,692,460.50. The remainder, <2,257,065.80, was
the balance from last year.
The disbursements during the same period were for Congre»-
sional. Executive, and judicial purposes, (5,939,009.29; for for-
eign intorcourse, 91,339,710.35; for misoellaneous expeuses,
including the mints, loans, poet-office deficiencies, collectioa of
revenue, and other* like charges, 914,129,771.50; for expenses
under the Interior Department, $3,102,985.52 ; under the War
I>epartment, $394,308,407,36; under the Navy Department,
$42,674,569.69; for interest on public debt, $13,190,324.45;
aud fur payment of public debt, including reimbursement of
temporary loan, and redemptions, $96,096,922.09 ; making an
aggregate of $570,841,700.25, and leaving a balance in the
treasury on the first day of July, 1862, of $13,043,546.81.
It should be observed that the sum of $96,096,922.09, ex-
pended for reimbureemeots and redemption of public debt, be-
ing included also in the loans made, may be properly deducted,
both from receipts and expenditures, leaving the actual re-
ceipts fur the year, $487,768,324.97; and the expend! tnree,
$474,744,778.16.
Other information on the subject of the finances will be
found in the report of the Secretary of the Treasury, to whoee
statements and views I invite your most candid and considerate
attention.
The reporte of the Secretaries of War and of the Xavy are
herewith transmitted. These reports, though lengthy, are
scarcely more than brief abetracts of the very numerous and ex-
tensive transactions and operations conducted through those
Departments. Nor could I give a summary of them here, upon
any principle, which would admit of its being much shorter
ovGoo'^lc
ABBAHAM LINCOLN. 263
tban the reports themselTes. I therefore conteot myKlf with
lajiDg the reports before you, and aakiDg your attention to them.
It gives me pleasure to report a decided improvement in
the financial condition of the Post-office Department, as com-
pared with severtd preceding yeais. The receipts for the fiscal
year 1861 amounted to $8,349,296.40, which embraced the
revenue from all the States of the Union for three quarters of
that yeaj-. Notwithstanding the cessation of revenue from the
so-called seceded States during the last fiscal year, the increase
of the correspondence of the loyal States has been sufficient to
produce a revenue during the same year of t8, 299 ,820. 90, being
only (60,000 lees than was derived from all the States of the
Union during the previous year. The expenditures show a still
more ftvorable result. The amount expended in 1861 was
$13,606,759.11. For the last year the amount has been re-
duced to $11,125,364.13, showing a decrease of about $2,-
481,000 in the expenditures as compared with the preceding
year, and about $3,750,000 as compared with Uie fiscal year
1860. The deficiency iu the DeparUneot for the previous year
was $4,551,966.98. For the last fiscal year it was reduced to
$2,112,814.57. Hiese &vorabIe results are in part owing to
the cessation of maO service io the insurrectionary States, and
in part to a careful review of all expenditures in that Depart-
ment in the interest of economy. The effidency of the postal
service, it is believe<J, has also been much improved. The
Postmaster- General has also opened a correspondence, through
the Department of State, with IbreigD governments, proposing
a convendon of postal representatives for the purpose of ampli-
fying the ratee of foreign postage, and to expedite the foreign
muls. This propoation, equally important to our adopted
citizeos, and to the commercial interests of this country, has
been favorably entertained and agreed to by all the govem-
ments from whom replies have been received.
I ask the attention of Congress to the si^gestions of the
Poetmaster-Oeneral in his report respecting the further le^la-
tiOD required, in his opinion, for the benefit of the postal service.
The Secretary of Uie Interior reports as follows in r^ard to
the public lands :
"The puUlc hinds have ceased to be a source of nvenoe.
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264 llFTi AND TIMES OF
From the Ist of July, 1861, to the 30Lh. September, 1862, the
entire cash receipts from the sale of lands vere 1137,476.26 —
a Bum much less than the expenses of oar Uod system during
the same period. The homestead law, which will take effect on
the 1st of January next, ofiere Bucli inducements to settlers thai
sales for cash can not be expected, to ao extent sufficient to
meet the expenses of the General Land-office, and the cost of
surveying and bringing the land into market"
The discrepancy between the sum here stated as arising from
the sales of Uie public lands, and the sum derived from the
same source as reported from the Treasury Department arises,
as I understand, from the fact that the periods of time, though
apparently, were not really, coincident at the banning point —
the Treasury report including a considerable sum now, which
had previously been reported from the interior — sufficiently
large to greatly overreach the sum derived from the three
months now reported by the Interior, and not by the
Treasury.
The Indian tribes upon our frontiers have, during the past
year, manifested a spirit of insubordination, and, at several
points, have engaged in open hostilities against the white settle-
ments in their vicinity. The tribes occupying the Indian
country south of Kansas renounced their alliance to the
United Slates, and entered into treaties with the insurgents.
Those who remained loyal to the United States were driven
from the country. The chief of the Cherokees has vinted this
city for the purpose of restoring the former relations of the tribe
with the United States. He alleges that they were constrained,
by superior force, to enter into treaties with the insurgents, and
that the United States neglected to furnish the protection which
their treaty stipulations required.
In the month of August last the Sioux Indians, in AHnne-
Bota, attacked the settlements in their vicinity with extreme
ferocity, killing, indiscriminately, men, women, and children.
This attack was wholly unexpected, and therefore no means
of defense had been provided. It is estimated that no less than
eight hundred persona were killed by the Indians, and a large
amount of property was destroyed. How this outbreak was
induced is not definitely known, and suspicions, which may be
ovGoo'^lc
ABRAHAM UNCOIL. 265
ODJust, need not be staled. Inforinatioii waa received hy the
Indian Bureau, from different sources, about the time hostilities
were commenoed, that a umultaneoua attack was about to be
made upon the white settlemectB by all the tribee between the
Miaeiseippi River and the Bocky Mountains. The State of
Minnesota has sufiere^ great injury from this Indian war. A
large portion of her territory has been depopulated, 4nd a severe
loss has been sustained by the destruction of property. The
people of that State manifest much anxiety ibr the removal of
the tribes beyond the limits of the State as a guarantee against
future hoetJlitJes. The Commisdoner of Indian Affairs will fur-
nish full details. I submit for your special consideration whether
onr Indian system shall not be remodeled. Many wise and
good men have impressed me with the belief that this can be
profitably done.
I submit a statement of the proceedings of commisaioners,
which shows the prt^resa that has beeu made in the enterprise
of constructing the Pacific Railroad. And this suggests the
earliest completion of this road, and also the &vorahle action of
Congress upon the projects now pending before them for en-
larging the capacities of the great canals in New York and
DliiKiis, as being of vital and rapidly increafflng importance to
the whole Nation, and especially to the vast interior region'
hereinafter to be noticed at some greater length. I propose
having prepared, and hud before you at an early day, some in-
t^estiag and valuable statbtical information upon this subject.
The military and commerml importance of enlarging the Illinois
and Michigan Canal, and improving the Illinois River, is pre-
sented in the report of Colonel Webster to the Secretary of War,
and DOW tntnsmitted to Congress. I respectfully ask atten-
tion to it
To carry out the provinons of the Act of Congress of the
16th of May last, I have caused the Department of Agriculture
of the United States to be organized.
The CommiBsioner informs me that, within the period of a
few months this Department has established an extensive system
of correspondence and exchanges, both at home and abroad,
which promises to e^ct highly beneficial results in the de-
velopment of a correct knowledge of recwt improvements in
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266 LIFE AND TIMES OF
agriculture, in tbe introduction of new pnxluota, and in the col-
lection of the agricultural statistics of the difierent States.
Also that it will soon be prepared to distribute largely Beeds,
cereals, plants, and cuttings, and has already published, and
liberally difiused, much valuable information in anticipatioD of
a more elaborate report, which will in di^e time be furnished,
embracing some valuable testa in chemical science now id prc^
ress iu the laboratory.
The creation of this department was for the more immediate
benefit of a large class of our most valuable citizens ; and I trust
that the liberal basis upon which it has been oiganized will not
only meet your approbation, but that it will r^ize, at no dis-
tant day, all the fondest anticipations of its most sanguine
iVieods, and become tbe fruitful source of advantage to all our
people.
On the 22d day of September last a prodamation was issued
by the Executive, a copy of which is herewith submitted-
In accordance with the purpose expressed in the second
paragraph of that paper, I now repectfully recall your attention
to what may be called " compensated emancipation."
A nation may be said to consist of its territory, its people,
and its laws, 'ths territory U the only part which is of certain
duralHlity. "One generation passeth away, and another gen-
eration Cometh, but the earth abidetli forever." It is of the
first importance to duly consider and estimate this ever-enduring
part That portion of the earth's surface which is owned and
inhabited by the people of the United States is well adapted to
be the home of one national family, and it is not well adapted
ibr two or more. Its vast extent, and its variety of climate
and productions, are of advantage in this age for one people,
whatever they might have been in former ages. Steam, tele-
graphs, and intelligence have brought these to be an advan-
b^eous combination for one united people-
In the Inaugural Address I briefly pointed out the total
inadequacy of disunion as a remedy for the diflerences between
tbe people of the two sections. I did so in language which I
can not improve, and which, therefore, I beg to repeat:
"One section of our country believes slavery is right and
ongfat to be extended, while the other believes it is mvng and
ovGoO'^lc
ABRAHAM UfiCOLK. 267
oDgfat Dot to be extended. This is the only eubetantial dispute.
He fugitive-daTe clause of the Constitution, and the law for
the suppression of the foreign slave-trade, are each as well
eoforced, perhaps, as any law can ever be in a comniUDity
where the moral sense of the people imperfectly supports the
law itself. The great body of ^e people abide by the dry legal
obligation in both cases, and a few break over in each. This,
I thinh, can not he perfectly cured; and it would he worse in
both cases t^er the separation of the sections than before. The
foreign shtTe-trade, now imperfectly suppressed, would be ulti-
mately revived without restricUon in one section ; while fugitive
slaves, now only partially surrendered, would not be surrendered
at all by the other.
" physically speaking, we can not separate. We can not
remove onr respective seotbus from each other, nor build an
impassable wall between them. A husband and wife may be
divorced, and each go out of the presence and beyond the reach
of each other; but the diflerent parts of our country can not
do this. They can not but remain face to fiice; aud intercourse,
either amicable or hostile, must continue between them. Is it
possible, then, to make that intercourse more advautageous or
more satislBCtory i^ter separation than b^ore t Can aliens make
treaties easier than Jrienda can make lawsT Can treaties be
more futhfully enforced between aliens than Uws can among
friends? Suppose you go to war, you can not fight always;
and wh«], after much loss on both udes, and no gain on dther,
you cease fighting, the identical old questions as to terms of
intercourse are again upon you."
There is no line, strdght or crooked, suitable for a national
boundary upon which to divide. Trace through, from east to
west, upon the line between the free and slave country, and
we shall find a little more than one-third of iu length are rivers,
easy to be crossed, and populated, or soon to be populated,
thickly upon both sides; while nearly all ite remainioK length are
merely surveyor's lines, over which people nfsy walk back and
forth without any consciousness of thdr presence. No part of
this line can be made any more difficult to pass by writing it
down on paper or parchment as a national boundary. The &ct
of separation, if it comes, gives up on the part of the seceding
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268 LIFE AND TIMES OF
section the fu^tive^&ve clause, along with all other Constita-
tional obligadoDB upon the section seceded from, while I should
expect no treat; stipulation would ever be made to take
its place.
But there is another difficulty. The great iuterior r^on,
bounded east by the Alleghanies, north bv the British domin-
ions, west by the Rocky Mountains, and south by the line along
which the culture of coro and cotton meets, and which includes
part of Virginia, part of Tennessee, all of Kentucky, Ohio,
Indiana, Michigan, Wieconsin, Dlinois, Miasouri, Kansas, Iowa,
Minnesota, and the Territories of Dakota, Nebraska, and part
of Colorado, already has above ten million people, and will
have 6fty millions within fifty years, if not prevented by any
political folly or mistake. It contains more than one-third of
the country owned by the United States — certainly more than
one million square miles. Ouce half as populous as Massachu-
setts already is, it would have more than seventy-five million
people. A glance at the map shows that, territorially speaking,
it is the great body of the Bepublic The other parts are but
mai^inal borders to it, the magnificent region sloping west from
the Rocky Mountains to the Pacific, being the deepest and also
the richest in undeveloped resources. In the production of
provisions, gralna, grasses, and all which proceed from them,
this great interior region is naturally one of the most important
in the world- Ascertain from the statistics the small proportion
of the region which has, as yet, been brought into cultivation,
and also the lai^ and rapidly increasing amount of its products,
and we shall be overwhelmed with the magnitude of the pros-
pect present«d. And yet this region has no sea-coast, touches
no ocean anywhere. As part of one Nation, its people now
find, and may forever find, tbeir way to Europe by New York,
to South America aud Africa by New Orleans, and to Asia by
San Francisco. But separate our common country into two
nations, as designed by the present Rebellion, and every man
of this great interbr r^on is thereby cut off from some one or
more of these outlets, not, perhaps, by a physical barrier, but
by embarnissiDg and onerous trade regulations.
And this ia true whetvoer a dividing or boundary line may
be fixed. Place it between the now free and slave country, or
ovGoO'^lc
■ABRAHAM UNCOLN. 269
place it wiuth of Kentachf, or north of Ohio, and still the
truth remains, that none south of it can trade to any port or
place north of it, and nooe north of it can trade to an; port or
place south of it except upon t«nns dictated by a govemment
foreign to them. These outlets, east, west, and south, are in*
dispensable to the well-being of the people iDhabiting, and to
inhabit, this vast interior region. Wkwh of the three may be
the beat is no proper question. All are better than ^Iher; and
all of right belong to that people aod to their successors forever.
True to themselves, they will not oak where a line of separatJon
shall be, but will vow, rather, that there shall be no such line.
Nor are the marginal r^iona less interested in these communi-
cations to and through them to the great outside world. They,
too, and each of them, must have access to this Egypt of the West
without paying toll at the crossing of any national bonodary.
Our Dational strife springs not from our permanent part;
not from the land we inhabit; not from our national home-
stead. There is no possible severing of this but would multijjy,
and not mitigate, evils among us. In all its adaptations and
aptitudes it demands union and abhors separation. In fact, it
would erelong force reunion, however much of blood and treasure
die separation might have cost.
Our strife pertaios to onreelves, to the passing generations
of men ; and it can, without convnluon, be bushed forever with
the pasnng of one generation.
In this view, I recommend the adoption of the following
resolution and articles amendatory to the Constitution of the
United States :
"Reaoived, by the Senate and Hovx of Bt^rt»enUitiw» oj ihe
Un^ed Statea o^ America m Gonyrett attembled (two-thirds of both
Houses concurring), That the following articles be proposed to
the Legislatures (or conventions) of the several States as amend-
ments to the Cuuatitotion of the United States, all or any of
which articles, when ratified by three-fourths of the said L^s>
latures (or conventions), to be valid as part or parts of the said
Constitution, namely :
"Abticle — . Every State, wherein slavery now exists,
which shall abolish the same therein, at any time, or times, be-
fore the first day of January, in the year of our Lord one
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270 LIFE AJ4D TIUES OF
tbousand oine hundred, shall recuv^ compenealioD from Ute
United SutM, tas follows, to vit : —
"The President of the United Stutea shall deliver to every
such State bonds of the United States, bearing interest at the
rate of per cent per annum, to an amount equal to the
aggregate sum of for each slave shown to have been
therein by the eighth census of the United Slat«s, said bonds
to be delivered to such States by installments, or in one pared,
at the completioD of the abolishmeot, accordingly as the same
shall have been gradual, or at one time, within such State;
and interest shall begin to run upon any such bond only from
the proper time of its delivery as aforesaid. Any State having
received bonds as aforesaid, and afterwards reintroducing or
tolerating slavery therein, shall refund to the United States
the bonds so received, or the value thereof, and all interest
paid thel%on.
" ABTictB — . All slaves who shall have enjoyed actual
freedom by the chances of tbe war at any time before the end
of the rebellion, shall be forever fi-ee; but all owners of sucb,
who shall not have been disloyal, shall be compensated for
them, at the same rates as is provided for States adopting ab(J-
ishment of slavery, but in such way that no slave shall be
twice accounted fur.
" Abticle — . Congress may appropriate mtmey and othei>-
wise provide for colonizing free colored persons, with their own
consent, at any place or places without the United States."
I beg indulgence to discuss these proposed articles at some
length. Without slavery the Rebellion could never have ex-
isted; without slavery it could not continue.
Among tbe iriends of the Union there is great diversity of
sentiment and of policy in r^^rd to slavery and the African
race among us. Some would perpetuate davery ; some would
abolish it suddenly, and without compensation ; some would
abolish it gradually, fuid with compensation; some would re-
move the freed people from as, and some would retain them
with us ; and there are yet other minor diversities. Because
of these diversities, we waste much strength in struggles among
ourselves. By mutual concession we should harmonize and act
together. This would be compromise; but it would be com-
ovGoO'^lc
ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 271
promise among the friends, and not with the enemies, of the
Union. These articles are intended to embody a plan of such
mutual conceesjona. If the plan shaO be adopted, it is assumed
that emancipation will follow, at least, in several of the States.
As to the first article, the medn points are: first, the
emandpatiun ; secondly, the length of time for consummating
it — thirty-seven years ; and, thirdly, the compensatioD.
The emancipation will be unsatisfactory to the advocfttes of
perpetual slavery ; but the length of Ume ^uuld greatly miti-
gate their diBsatisraclion. The time spares both races from the
evils of sudden derangement — in fact, from the necesdty of any
derangement — wbUe most of those whcee habitual course of
thought will be disturbed by the measure will have passed
away before its consummation. They will never see it. An-
other class will hail the prospect of emancipation, but will dep-
recate the length of time. They will feel that it gives too
little to the now living slaves. But it really gives them mnch.
It saves them from the vagrant destitution which must largely
attend immediate emanctpatina in localities where their num-
bers aro very great ; and it gives the inspiring assurance that
their posterity shall be free forever. The plan leaves to each
State, cboo«ng to act under it, to abolish slavery now or at the
end of the century or at any intermediate dme or by degrees,
extending over the whole or any part of the period ; and it
obliges no two States to proceed alike. It also provides for
onmpensaUon, and generally, the mode of making it This, it
would seem, must further mitigate the dissatisfacdon of those
who iavor perpetual slavery, and especially of those who aro to
receive the compensation. Doubtless some of those who are to
pay, and not to receive, will object Yet the measure is both
just and economical. In a certain sense, the liberation of
slaves is the destruction of property, property acquired by de-
scent or by purchase, the same aa any other property. It is
no lees true for having been often said, that the people of the
South aro not mora responsible for the original introduction of
this property than are the people of the North ; and when it is
remembered how unhesitatingly we all use cotton and sugar,
and share the profits of dealing in them, it may not be quite
safe to say that the South has been moro responsible than tlifr
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272 LIFE AND TIMES OF -
North for iti coiitiDuanc«. If, then, for a common object; this
property is to be Bacriiiced, is it not just that it be done at a
oommoD cbargef
And if, with leas money, or money more easily pud, we can
preserve the benefits of the Union by this means than we can
by the war alone, is it not alao economical to do it? Let us con-
sider it, then. Let ns ascertMn the sum we bave expended in the
wardnce compensated emancipation was proposed last March, and
consider whether, if that measure bad been promptly accepted,
by even some of the Slave Statea, the same ram would not have
done more to close the war than has been otherwise done. If so,
the measure would save money, and, in that view, wonM be a
prudent and economical measure. Certainly it is not so easy
to pay tomelhing as it is to pay nolhmg; but it is easier to pay
a large sum than it is to pay a targar one. And it is eader to
pay any sum uAen we are able, than it is to pay it b^bre we
are able. The war requires lar^ soms, and requires them at
once. The aggregate sum necessary for compensated emanci-
pation of course would be large. But it would require no
ready cash, nor the bonds, even, any faster than tbe emancipa-
tion progresses. This might not, and probably would not, close
befbre tbe end of the thirty-seven years. At that time we shall
probably have a hundred million people to sbaie the burden,
instead of thirty-one millions, as now. And not only so, but
the increase of our population may be expected to continue for
a long time after that period as rapidly as before ; because our
territory will not have become full. I do not state this incon-
siderately.
At the same ratio of increase which we have maintained,
on an average, from our first national census in 1790, until
that of 1860, we should, in 1900, have a population of one
hundred and tiiree million two hundred and eight thousand
four hundred and fifteen. And why may we not continue that
ratio fer beyond that period ? Our abundant room — our broad
national homestead — is our ample resource. Were our terri-
tory as limited as are the British Isles, very certainly our pop-
ulation could not expand as stated. Instead of receiving the
fsreign bom, as now, we should be compelled to send part of
the native bom away.
ov Google
ABRAHAM LINC!OLN. 273
Bat aach ie not onr «<Hidition. We have two milGon nine
Imndred and dz^-three thousand square mUes. Europe has
tluree million and eight hundred thousand, with a population
averagiDg seventy-three and one-third persons to the kjubto
mile. Why may hot our country, at some time, average as
manyT Is it less fertile? Has it more waste surface, by
mountains, riverB, lakes, deserts, or other eauses? Is it inferior
to Europe in any Batumi advantt^? If, then, we are at some
time to be as populous as Europe, bow soonT Ab to when
this may be, we can judge by the paBt and the present ; as to
when it mO. be, if ever, depends much on whether we maintain
the Union.
SeTeral of our States are already above the average of
Europe — seventy-three and a third to the square mile. Mas-
sachusetts has 157; Rhode Island, 133; Connecticut, 99;
New York and New Jersey, each, 80, Also two other great
Btates, Pennsylvania and Obio, an not far below, the former
having 68, and the latter 59. The States already above the
European average, except New York, have increased in as
ra[»d a ratio, dnce pAsnng that point, as ever before ; while no
one of tbem is equal to some other parts of our country in
natural capficity for sustaining a dotse population.
Taking the Nation in the aggregate, and we find its popular-
tion and ratio of increase, fcff tiie several deoennial periods, to
be as follows : —
1790.
1800.
1810.
1820 9,638,181 83.13
1830 12,866,020 38.48
1840 17,069,463 32.67
1850 23,191,876 36.87
1860 31,443,790 36.68
This shows an average decennial increase of 34.69 per cent
in population through the seventy years Irom our first to our
last census yet taken. It is seen that the ratio of increase, at
no one of these seven periods, is either two per cent below or
two per cent above the average ; thus showing how iuBexible,
18-Q
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274 LIFE ANS TIH£9 OF
aod, conseqaently, bow reliable, th« law of increaBe, in our caae,
ia. ABEuming that it will oontinae, pvm tbe foUowing leaulta : —
1870 42,323,341
1880 66,967,216
1890 76,677.872
1900 103,208,416
1910 138,flIS,S26
1920 186,084,335
1980 261,680,914
These fignns ahow that our country ma*/ be as populous as
. Europe now is at some point between 1920 and 1930 — my
about 1925 — onr territory, at seventy-three and a third perBona
to the square mile, being of capadty to oonUun two hundred
and seventeen million one hundred and eighty-six thousand.
And we vnU reach this, too, if we do not ourselves lelin-
quish the chance by the folly and evils of disunion, or by long-
and exhausting war springing from the only great element of
national discord among us. While it can not be foreseen ex-
aotly how much one bage example of secession, breeding lesser
ones indefinitely, would retard population, civilization, and
proeperity, no one can doubt that the extent of it would be.
very great and injurious.
The proposed emancipation would shorten the wan perpeta-
ate peace, insure tbis increase of population, and propoiUm^
ately the wealth of the country. With these, we should pay all
the emancipation would cost, together with our other debt,,
eariet than we abould pay our other debt without it If we
had allowed our old national debt to run at dx per cent per
annum, simple interest, from the end of our Bevolutionary
struggle until to^y, without paying anything on either prin-
tipai or interest, each man of us would owe less upon that debt
now than each man owed upon it then ; and this because our
increase of men through the whole period has been greater than
six per cent ; has run &ster than the interest upon the debt.
Thus, time alone relieves a debtor nation, so long as its popula-
tion increases faster than unpwd interest accumulates on its debt
lliis &ct would be no excuse for delaying payment of what
it justly due; but it abows Ibe great importance of time in thia.
ovGoO'^lc
ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 276
connection— the great advantage of a policy b; vbicb we shall
not baTe to pa; ODtil we number a hundred millions, what, bjr
a difierent policy, we would have to pay now, when we num-
ber but tbirly-one millions. In a word, it shows that a dollar
will be much harder to pay for the war than will be a dollar
ttx emancipation on the proposed plan. And then the latter
will cost DO blood, no precioui life. It will be a saving of both.
As to the aecoDd article, I think it would be imiHaoticable
to return to bondage the class of persons therein contemplated.
Some of them, doubtless, in the property sense, belong to loyal
owners, and hence provision is made in this article for ootn-
pensatiDg snch.
The third article t«lat«8 to the future of the ire«d people.*
It does not oblige, but merely authorizes, Congreee to ud in
colonizing such as may consent. This ought not to be regarded
as objectionable on the one hand or on the other, insomuch as it
oomee to nothing, unless by the mutual consent of the people
to be deported, and the American voters through their Repre-
sentatives in Congress.
I can not make it better known than it already is, that I
strongly fovor colonization. And yet I wish to say there is an
objection urged agfunst free colored persons remwning in the
country which is largely imaginary, if not scHnetimee malicious.
It is insisted that their presence would injure and displace
white labor and white laborers. If there ever could be a proper
lime for mere catch arguments, that time surely is not now.
In times like the present men should utter nothing for which
they would not willingly be reeponuble through time and in
eternity. Is it true, then, that colored people can dispUce any
more while labor by bdng free than by remaining daves ? If
they ^y in their old places, they jostie do white laborers ; if
they leave their old places, they leave them open to white
laboterB. Logically, there is neither tnore nor less of it.
EmandpatioD, even without deportation, would probably en-
hance the wages of white labor, and, very surely would not
ndnce them. Thus, the customary amount of labor would still
have to be performed ; the freed people would surely not do
more than their old proportion of it, and, very probably, for a
time would do lew, leaving an increased part to white laborers,
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276 LIFE AND TIltES OF
bring their labor into gmter denuwd, and oonsequflndy en-
hanoing the wagee of it. With deportation, even to • limited
extent, enhanced wages to white labor ie mathematically oer-
tein. Labor is like any other commodity in the market —
increaae the demand for it and yon increase the price of iL
•Reduce the supply of black labor by colonizing the bUck laborffl*
out of the country, and by precisely so much you increase the
demand for and wages of white labor.
But it is dreaded that the &eed people will swarm forth,
and cover the whole land T Are they not already in the laud ?
Will liberation make Ihem any more numerous? Equally dis-
tributed among the whites of the whole country, and there
would be but one colored to seven whites. Could the ooe, in
any way, greatly disturb the seven ? There are many com-
muniticB now, having more than one free colored person to
seven whites; and this, without any apparent consciouBnees of
evil from it. The District of Colombia and the Btatee of Mary-
land and Delaware are all in this condition. The District has
more than one free colored to six whit«fl ; and yet, in its fre-
quent petitions to Congress, I believe it has never presenl«d the
presence of free colored persons as one of its grievances. But
why should emancipation south s«id the fVeed people north J
People, of any color, seldom run, unless there he something to
run {torn. Streiifare colored people, to some extent, have fled
north from bondage, and now, perhaps, from both bondage and
destitution. But if gradual emancipation and deportation be
adopted, they will have neither to flee from. Their old masters
will give them wages, at least until new laborers oan be procured ;
and the freedmen, in turn, wiU ^adly give thmr labor for the
wages, till new homes can be found for them, in congenial
climee, and with people of their own blood and race. This
proposition can be trusted on the mutual interests involved.
And, in any event, oan not the North decide for itself, whether
to reodve them ?
Again, as practice proves more than theory in any case,
has there been any irruptiou of Colored people northward be-
cause of the abolishment of slavery in this District last spriogf
What I have said of the proportjon of free colored persons
to the whites in the District is fitun the oeoBui of 1860, baring
:b,GOO'^IC
AKU.HAM LINCOLN. 277
no reference to poraoiu called oontrabaiicls, nor to those made
free by the Act of Congress aboliahing slavery here.
The pUn consiatiog of these arttdes ia recoDunended, not
bat that a restoration of the natianal authority would be ao-
oepted without its adoption.
Nor will the war, nor proceedings under the Proclamation
of September 22, 1862, be stayed because of the reeommmdatiott
of this plan. Its timely adoption, I doubt not, would Ining
restoration, and thereby stay both.
And, notwithstanding this plan, the recommendalioD diat
CongreBs provide by law for compensating any State which may
adopt emancipation before this plan shall have been acted upon
is hereby earnestly renewed. Such would be only an advance
part of the plan, and the same ai^uments apply to both.
This plan is recommended as a means, not in excloraon of
but additional to all others for restoring and preserving the
national authority throughout the Union, The subject is pre-
sented exclusively in its economical aspect. The plan would, I
am confident, secure peace more speedily, and maintain it more
permanently, than can be done by force alone ; while all it
would cost, conddering amounts, and manner of payment, and
times of payment, would be easier paid than will be the addi-
tional cost (^ the war, if we rely solely upon force. It is much,
rery much, that it would cost no blood at all.
The plan is proposed as permanent Constitutional law. It
can not become such without the concurrence of, first, two-
thirds of Coi^^ees, and afterwards, three-fourths of the States.
The requisite three-fourths of the States will necessarily include
seven of the Slave States. Their concurrenoe, if obtained, w3I
give assurance of their severally adopting emancipation at no
very distant day upon the new Constitutional terms. This
assurance would end the straggle nowi and save the Union
forever.
I do not foi^t the gravity which should characterize a
paper addreesed to the Congress of the Nation by the Chief
Magistrate of the Nation. Nor do I forget that some of you
are my seniors, nor that many of you have more experience
than I in the conduct of public affiiirs. Yet I trust that in
view of the great responribility resting upon -me, you will
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278 UFE AND TIMES OF
pereeire no want of respect to younelTee in any undue earnest-
ness I may seem to display.
Is it doubted, then, that the plan I propose, if adopted,
would shorten the war, and thus lessen ita expenditure of money
and of blood f Is it doubted that it would restore the national
authority and national prosperity, and perpetuate both indefi-
nitely? Is it doubted that we here — Congress and Executive —
oan secure its adoption ? Will not the good people respond to
a united and earnest appeal from usf Can we, can they, by
any other means so certainly or so speedily assure these vital
objects? We can succeed only by concert It is not " can any
of us tmojrtne betterf but "can we <iU do better?" Object
whatsoever is possible, still the question recurs "can we do
better?" The dognias of the quiet past are inadequate to the
stormy present. The occasion ia piled high with difficulty, and
we must rise with the occasion. As our case is new, so we must
tiiiuk anew and act anew. We must disenthrall ourselves, and
thcD we shall save our country.
FellowKjitizens, we can not escape history. We, of this Con-
gress and this Administratiou, will he remembered in spile of
ourselves. No personal significance, or insignificance, can spare
one or another of us. The fiery trial through which we pass
will light us down, in honor or dishonor, to the latest genera-
tion. We w^ we are for the Union. The world will not forget
that we say this. We know how to save the Union. The
world knows we do know how to save it. We — even toe here — ■
hold the power and bear the responsibility. In giving freedom
to the dme we osnirc freedom lo the ,/ne — honorable alike in
what we give and what we preserve. We shall nobly save, or
meanly lose, the last, beet hope of earth. Other means may
succeed ; tbis could not fail. The way is plain, peaoefiil,
generous, just — a way which, if followed, Uie world will forever
applaud, and God must ftrever bless.
The reverses in the army and at the poUs greatly
emboldened the " Opposition," and Congress had
barely assembled until attacks on the Administratioa
and its policy began to be made in this quarter.
ovGoO'^lc
ABBAHAU UNCOLK. 279
Tfae first subject claimmg the attention of these men
was that of "nnconstitutioiial" arrests. Habecu car-
put was again the cowardly and mischieTOUS theme.
Still nothing was directly accomplished, as the
strength of the war and Administration party was
unbroken. It was always known beforehand that
any scheme of the " Opposition " to thwart the policy
of the Government would fail, and could do no more
than harass the Administration and disturb the
country, while it gave hope to the enemy. Strangely
enough, it remained to the end one of the apparent
ballucinations of the leaders of this Northern factious
party that some acceptable terms could be arranged
with the South for the restoration of the Union as
it was. Recommendations to suspend hostilities
were even made directly to the President, on ficti-
tions and mischievous pretexts, looking to that end.
But fortunately a superior wisdom controlled the af-
fairs of the Nation. In a speech made by JefTerson
Davis in Mississippi, December 26, 1862, he said :—
" After what has happened daring the last two years,
my wonder is that we consented to live for so long a time
with such miecreants, and have loved so much a Govern-
ment rotten to the core. Were it ever proposed again to
enter into a union with such a people, I could no more
consent to do it than to trust myself in a den of thieves."
Yet this folly of the " Opposition " went on, and
nothing ever happened to show that it was not a part
of the spirit of error and evil which actuated the
rebel leaders.
Notwithstanding the numerical strength of the
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280 UFE ASD TIMES OF
war and Adrnmistratioii party in CoDgress nothing
came of the President's proposition to end the wu
in an amendment of the Constitution on the basis of
compensated emancipation. A great part of his mes-
sage is taken up in an earnest presentation of this plan,
which, if acted upon at once, would have modified .
his Emancipation Proclamation, or postponed it, or
in some way changed the current of things. But it
did not seen) to meet the demand of the times.
Senator Henry Wilson, of Massachusetts, said it was
not the Divine way. And so Mr. Lincoln subse-
quently thought.
A very strong and almost successful effort was
made at this session to pass a bill providing for com-
pensated emancipation in Missouri. A bill for that
purpose passed in the House, and somewhat modified
was carried in the Senate. But the House failed, on
the last day of the session, to agree to the Senate
bill, and thus ended forever this scheme for which
Mr. Lincoln had hoped so much.
This was the regular, short, biennial session of
Congress and ended on the third day of March, 1863.
The chief measures passed and approved by the
President were the various immense appropriations
for the expenses of the Government ; a bill for rais-
ing a volunteer force in Kentucky to serve in that
State, but under the rules of war; a bill incorporat-
ing a National Association for the support of colored
children and aged colored women ; a bill authoriz-
ing the President to appoint the head of one De-
partment to fill the place of the head of another
ovGoO'^lc
ABRAHAU UNCOUT. 281
for a vacancy of six months ; to organize the Ter-
ritories of Arizona and Idaho, excluding slavery
therefrom ; to provide a national currency ; to
punish correspondence with rebels; the enrolling or
draft act ; justifying the President in his course as to
the writ of habeas corpus, and giving him further
authority in suspending it ; to authorize privateering;
to incorporate a society in Washington for the educa-
tion of colored youth ; and on the last day of De-
cember, 1862, was approved the bill for the admission
of West Virginia as a Stat« of the Union, one of the
most needless and unwise measures of Mr. Lincoln's
Administration. Looked upon as a Republican party
measure, it was an utter failure, as time has suffi-
ciently demonstrated. And viewed from all the points
really worthy of respect, the benefits and goods to
come out of it to the old State or the new, little,
poor, mountain one, the measure can hardly be made
to appear wise. The theory on which the State was or-
ganized was a new one, and to it the Administration
was long unwaveringly opposed. But time and the
continuance of the Rebellion cleared the way for
the folly, which otherwise never could have been
possible. The whole movement was a stupendous
piece of foolishness on the part of the people of
West Virginia, and at the outset and always it was
an error to recognize their error. This anomalous
bit of history never should have been made ; and at
the end of the Rebellion Western Virginia would
have been, as was right, a part of the old recon-
structed State.
ov Google
UFE AND TIMES OF
CHAPTER XII.
1862 — WAR OF THE REBELLION — ISLAND No. 10— GEN-
ERAL POPE — NEW ORLEANS — GENERAL BUTLER —
FARRAGUT AND HIS MORTAR FLOTILLA — SHILOH —
CORINTH — PERRYVILLB — STONE RIVER — WHERE
STOOD THE GOD OF BATTLES.
"ExXCUnVS HaNBION, WAflHIIIOTON, 1
"January 27, 1862. J
"Pretident'i Oenerdl War Order, No. 1.
"Ordered, That the 22cl day of February, 1862, be
the day for a general movemeDt of the lantl aDd naval
forces of the United States agaiost the insurgent forces.
" That especially the army at and about Fortress Mon-
roe, the Army of the Potomac, the Array of Western
"Virginia, the army near Mumfordsville, Kentucky, the
army and flotilla at Cairo, and a naval force in the Gulf
of Mexico, be ready for a movement on that day.
"That all other forces, both land and naval, with their
respective commanders, obey existing orders for the time,
and be ready to obey additional orders when duly given.
"That the heads of Departments, and especially the
Secretaries of War and of the Navy, with all their subor-
dinates, and the General-in-Chief, with all other com-
manders and subordinates of land and naval forces, will
severally be held to their strict and full responsibilities
for the prompt execution of this order.
"Abraham Lincoln."
This extraordinary order was founded on two or
three important circumstances; the long inactivity
ovGoO'^lc
ABRAHAM UNCOLN. 283
of the army on the Potomac ander Qeneral McClellan ;
the wide-spread dissatisfaction on account of its inao-
tivity, and the persistent and constant clamor for its
movement; the change in th6 head of the War De-
partment; and the growing sentiment of distrust in
the intentions and ability of General McClellan, in
which the President began to share.
On the 13th of January, 1862, Edwin M. Stanton,
a Democrat of Ohio, had taken the place of Mr. Cam-
eron as Secretary of War, and it was through his
instigation that Mr. Lincoln, worn and out of patience
with McCIellan's delay, concluded to take the respon*
sibility of ordering a general movement against the
rebels. There^ had been a great outcry against the
appointment of Mr. Stanton, there being many able
Republicans selected for the place from which Mr.
Cameron had been allowed to resign; but the Pres-
ident had followed his unaided inclination in the
choice, and who will say to-day that he or any other
man could have made a better with the whole world
to select from?
A few days subsequently another war order was
issued, in which the President directed the Army of
the Potomac to be divided into five corps, under Irwin
McDowell, E. V. Sumner, S. P. Heintzelman, B. L.
Keyes, and N. P. Banks, and at once organized for
the field. This was immediately succeeded by an
order putting McClellan at the head of the Army of
the Potomac in the field, and relieving him of the
command of all other departments; Halleck the Com-
mander of the Department of the Mississippi, and
ov Google
^j^W
284 UFE AND TIMES OF
Fremont of the MountaiD Department of Vir^nift,
being authorized to report directly to the Secretary
of War. The President's order aa to the movement
of the Army of the Potomac was somewhat modified
under General McClellan's representations, and so
time passed on in comparative quietness on the
Potomac.
While this state of a£fairs continues in the East,
a brief glance may be made at a more active field.
At the time of taking position at Columbus, Ken-
tucky, the rebels had also occupied Island No. 10, in
the Mississippi, some distance below that place. By
their defenses here, at " Fort Pillow," and other strong
points above Memphis, they hoped to be able to hold
the great river below Columbus. But after the fall
of Forts Henry and Donelson, it was deemed politic
to abandon Columbus. A part of the forces at this
place went to Island No. 10, others were scattered
fllong the river at New Madrid and other places, and
some of them went to form the army A- S. Johnston
was gathering to oppose Buell and Grant. With a
view to the capture of Island No. 10, in February,
1863, General Halleck, at St. Louis, directed John
Pope, with the army under him at Cairo, considerably
outnumbering all the rebel forces from Columbus and
Fort Pillow, to move down the river and march across
the country to New Madrid. Pope reached this place
on the 3d of March, a few days after Polk bad
abandoned Cdlumbus. Finding the situation stronger
and more difficult than he expected, he sent to Cairo
for siege-guns. He also set to work, at the suggea-
ovGoO'^lc
ABRAHAM LINOOLH. 285
tioD of General Sohayler Hamilton, to open a canal
from below Island No. 8, twelve miles across the low
marshy country to New Madrid. The river here
makes two great, irregular, horeeshoe bends, one
pointing toward the aonth, with Island No. 10, and
the other lower down, pointing to the nortii, having
New Madrid at its toe on the Missouri side. In
nineteen days Pope had this canal ready to give
passage to his transports. In the meantime he had
planted batteries along the river for several miles
below, and had finally succeeded in scaring the rebels
out of New Madrid. Some of them took refuge at
Island No. 10, and others crossed the riVer. Large
quantities of stores and arms here fell into the hands
of Pope. About the middle of the month. Commo-
dore Foote had arrived, and begun to bombard the
works on the island. On the 6th of April Pope's
canal^was finished, and by this time one or two of
Commodore Foote's gun-boata had, on a dark night,
very ingeniously contrived to ran by the batteries
and join Pope at New Madrid. At day-break on the
7th he began to cross the river with a large portion
of his army, the rebels retreating before him and, at
the same time, evacuating Island No. 10. The river
was high, and at Ttptonville it was backed into the
marshes on the Tennessee side, so that the rebels
were completely hemmed in. Their case was now
without a shadow of hope. The pursuit of the
rebels was began at once, and before daylight on the
morning of the 8th of April the bulk of them, six
tbousand sevMiliandred, had thrown down their arms
ov Google
28e XIFE ABD HUES OF
and surrendered. On the same day Commodore Foote
had taken possession of Island No. 10.
la his report to Halleck, on the 9th, General
Pope said : " We have crossed this great river with
a large army, the banks of which were lined with the
batteries of the enemy to oppose our passage; have
pursued and captured all his forces and material of
war, and have not lost a man, nor met with an acoi-
dent." This was, indeed, a wonderful perfonn&nce^
and General Halleck, who was very profuse in his
praise where it was perfectly agreeable to him to
apply it, said it was the most brilliant affMr of the
war up to that period.
This stroke gave new vigor and streogUi to the
Union ct^ose, and opened the Mississippi to Fort Pil-
low. It had been correspondingly severe to the
rebels, who could poorly spare the little army and the
large number of guns aud vast amount of war sup-
plies, to a great extent sacrificed by incompetency
and cowardice. Two or three of their general officers
were surrendered to Pope, but in this their cause
hardly suffered, as the management, on tiieir part, at
Island No. 10 could not have been worse.
But, in the meantime, the question of the mastery
of the Mississippi was about to he solved in another
quarter. On the 25th of February General Benjamin
F. Butler, with a small force, sailed from Fortress
Monroe for the capture -of New Orleans. Captain
D. G. Farragnt, who was to co-operate with him, had
already sailed with his fleet for the rendezvous at
Ship Island, in Mississippi Sound. This expedition
ov Google
ABRAHAM LDIOOLN. 287
wfts undertaken bj the President and Secretary Stan-
ton, contrary to tiie judgment of General McGlellan,
vho gave it as his opinion that the attempt would
fail with an army of less than fifty thousand men.
Butler's whole force when assembled at the mouth
of the Mississippi was leas than fifteen thousand
men. But the fleet under Flag-officer Farragut was
large and powerfully armed. Twenty-one of the
vessels were mortar-sloops, under Captain David D.
Porter, and several of the best-built wardships of the
Navy were in the fleet. This was a wooden fleets
and its operations in the Mississippi were destined to
shake a little a.deoision reached by tiie iron-dad
contest in the Chesapeake, hereafler to be noticed.
On the 17th of April, a few days after Pope ap>
peared before *' Fort PiUow," above Memphis, Farra-
gut .and Porter began the bombardment of Forta
Jackson and St. Philip, twenty-five miles above the
mouth of the Mississippi, and seventy-five below
New Orleans. It was designed for the mortar
flotilla to reduce the forts, if possible; and if this
could not he done, Farragut was to run by them,
destroy the rebel fleet above, and cat ofT al\ support,,
while Butler was to find his way through the
marshes, fall upon St. Philip and carry it by storm.
Between the two forts the rebels had planted some
formidable obstructions across the channel of the
river, and above they had a considerable fleet, con-
sisting of two irou-clad vessels, a lar|;e number of
river steamboats armed as well as they would bear,.
some floating batteries, and fire-ships. On the night
:b,GOO'^IC
38S UFE AND TIMES OF
of the 24tli, Farragut with qiao of his Teasels guo-
ceeded, amidst a terrific canDooade, in raaniiig the
gauntlet of the forts, and after destroying or cap-
turiog the rebel fieet and clearing all obstniotious
before him, at one o'clock on the 36th appeared
before New Orleans and demanded its surrender.
Seeing the success of Farragut, Butler pushed
forward to perform his part of the tAsk^ the mortar
flotilla also resuming the assault on the forts. Al-
though the rebel commanders contiaaed the defense
.with spirit for a time, it was clear enough the mo-
ment that Farragut passed up that the forts and city
mnst'be surrendered. By the 28th both forts, with
their vast armaments, were in the hands of the Fed-
erals; and on the first day of May General Batler
took possession of New Orleans, relieving Commodore
Farragut from a task he was not very fit or desirous
to continue to perform. Farragut proceeded up the
river, capturing Baton Rouge, Natchez, and other
places, and, passing the fortifications at Vicksburg,
actually communicated with Commodore Foote's fleet
toward the close of the month. But not being able to
capture Ticksbarg, and the Gbvemment not yet being
ready or able to keep pace with his rapid movements,
he returned to the Gulf. The rebel fleet on the
Mississippi was now destroyed ; their great iron-clad,
under way at New Orleans, was bnmed by them-
selves, and all their efforts toward abip-bnilding on
that river broken up. These brilliant achievements
were rapidly exhausting the resources of the Rebell-
ion, and narrowing its leiise of life.
ovGoO'^lc
r
ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 289
SooD after the capture of Fort Donelson, General
Halleck began to prepare for an advance by the
Tennessee River on the second line of the rebel
positJon, the Memphis and Charleston Railroad.
Early in March, the army sailed up the river from
Fort Heory, under the command of General Charles
F. Smith, who had distinguished himself at Donelson,
and who, Halleck wrote to McClellan, was the only
officer who could be trusted with this important
movement. Grant had fallen under this great man's
displeasure, and had been ordered to tnm over the
command to Smith, and remain himself at Fort Henry.
Halleck reported Grant to McClellan as insnbordi-
irnte and negligent of duty, and the General-in-Chief
thought he ought to be punished. Halleck had very
foolishly based his charges against Grant on an anony-
mous letter, and was, perhaps, predisposed to treat
him with disfavor. But when Grant applied to be
relieved, aud demanded an investigation, he refused
to allow anything of the kind, notified the authorities
at Washington that Grant was "all right," and
ordered him to prepare to resume the command of
the force then on the way up the Teunesaee River.
On the 17th of March Grant reached Savannah; poor
C. F. Smith, in the meantime, being disabled, died
not long afterwards, without an opportunity to meet
the rebels again. He had chosen Pittsburg Landing
on the west side of the river as the base of opera-
tions, and this Grant accepted.
Here on tiie evening of the 6th of April Grant
had collected an army of about thirty-three thousand
ov Google
-290 LIFE AND TIMES OF
eflfective meD. " Pittsburg LaDdiag" was merely tJie
favorable point at which the Corinth road approached
the river, the latter place having some importance as
the junction of two lines of railroad, and being about
twenty miles from the Landing. The road ap-
proaches this point in a deep cut or ravine, furnish-
ing an easy outlet to the country back of it from
the river. At some distance from Pittsbui^ landing
two small streams. Snake Creek and Lick Creek, one
below and the other above, not fordable in time of
high water as at that season, emptied into the Ten-
nessee. The distance between these creeks is about
three miles, and the land a broken table, fifty or a
hundred feet above the river, mainly covered with
timber without much uoder-growth, and cut in dif-
ferent directions by irregular ravines. The plat of
country between these two streams was somewhat.
compressed a mile or two out by Owl Creek, a tribu-
tary of Snake Creek. Owl and Snake Creeks weT»
both bridged. Two and a half miles out from the-
landing stood the old log house, without windowB,
called Shiloh Church. This old cabin, long sinc&
gone, had been used as a camp-meeting nucleus in
the wonderful, hair-oracking, epileptic stage of some-
of the Churches.
About this log hut, dignified by the name of
Shiloh Church, on Saturday evening, April 6, 1862,
with his right resting near the bridge across Owli
Creek, lay Qeneral W. T. Sherman's division of
Grnnt's army. On the left of this position near Lick
Creek lay the left of Sherman's division, and some
ovGoo'^lc
ABRAHAM Lm(X)LH. 291
dJBtanoe in advance, cutting his line near the center,
was the division of General Beojamin M. Prentiss.
In the rear of Shermaa was the division of General
John A. McCkrnand, and a mile or so to the rear
were the divisions of Generals Harlbut and W. H. L.
Wallace. Lewis Wallaoe was with his division, over
six thousand strong, at and near Cramp's Landing,
six miles down the river; and General Grant waSy
for hb part, nine miles away at Savannah, on the
opposite side of the river. This position was ex-
tremely favorable for the^ Union army, which was,
omitting the division of Lewis Wallace, about seven
or eight thousand less than that of the rebels, over
forty thoosand strong, and ably commanded by Al-
bert Sidney Johnston, and then supposed to be
mainly at Corinth, twenty miles away.
When the preparntion for this movement began,
General Don Carlos Buell was at Nashville at the
head of what was called the Army of the Ohio, and
not in the department commanded by General Hal-
leek. Halleck notified him of his intended move-
ment and invited him to join him, believing correctly
that he wonld need all the help he could get. The
telegraphic correspondence of these two men about
this matter is not now an agreeable thing to reflect
upon, and would have been far less so at that crit-
ical period. .
Buell sent to Halleck : " What can I do to aid
your
HaUeck replied : " Why not come to the Tennes-
see and operate with me?"
ov Google
m-^w-"
292 LIFE AND TtUES OF
After a few evasive passages more between them,
Halleck again sent to Buell: "You do not say
whether we are to expect any reinforcements from
Nashville."
This contemptible coquetting about personal dis-
tinction was fortunately stopped by the President's
order on the 11th of March, extending the eastern
bne of Halleck's department into East Tennessee, .
and so including Buell. Halleck, who was in great
earnest about his grand project, was not slow in
availing himself of this fortunate turn, and at once
ordered Don Carlos to march with the greater part
of his army to his aid. But for a man who was
characteristically slow in his movements, except
when on the battle-field, this change came a few
days too late ; too late, at all events, to prevent the
national disaster of the 6th of April. Although
Buell was urged to move with all possible expedi-
tion, it does not appear beyond dispute that he did
anything of the kind. He built bridges, and traveled
after his own notion ; and it is pretty clear that had
it not been for the enei^y and anxiety of his ad-
vance division commander, General William Nelson,
he would not have been up in time to engage in the
battle of Shiloh at all.
The rebel commander was well aware of the
movement of Buell, and made eveiy eflfort to fight
Grant before he could join him. On Friday he left
Corinth with his whole available force, and hoped to
be able to fall upon the Federals early the next
morning. But a series of ill circumstances befell the
ov Google
ABEAHAM LINCOLN. 298
rebel movements oa Friday night and th« next
moroing, and most of Saturday iiad gone before they
were ready to make the strike. It was then thought
by John 0. Breckinridge, and some other of the gen-
eral officers, that they had lost their opportanity,
and as there would after that be no chance to sur-
prise the Union forces, they should retrace their
steps, and not risk a fight, at that time. But of
their movements up to Saturday night, there was
hardly a suspicion in the Union army. Gh'ant had
been on the ground that day, and there was, no
doubt, the general impression among the Union of-
ficers that the rebels were quite active in their front,
at a respectful distance, and that they did not con-
template an attack for several days. Thus far their
movements were a surprise to the national army;
and their coming in mass at dawn on Sunday was
also to some extent a surprise, although the whole
army was aware of an unusual demonstration in front
an hour or two before that time. The rebels were
well aware of their general disadvantages in making
the assault, of the favorable locality of the Union
army, and of the impossibility of their making flank
movements; and, perhaps, they were aware that
General Grant had spent three weeks in this strong
position without felling a tree, rearing any kind of
defenses, or even planting a battery. Had Johnston
struck the Union army on Saturday morning, there
is no certain evidence that his fate would not have
been different. Still there was no more of a sur-
prise on the part of the Union forces on Sunday
ov Google
294 UFE AND TIMES OF
morning than has often occurred before battles, and
about which much less was Bald.
Grant was down at Savannah, it is true, when he
should have been on the field with his army, but as
early as three o'clock Sunday morning Prentiss or-
dered a reconnoissance, and this small force struck
the rebel outposts when the battle began at some dis-
tance in front of the Union line, the full character of
the confiiot being barely realized until the rebel shot
and shell came crashing .through the trees.
Three or four hours afterwards Grant reached the
field, and found that the chances were, even then, very
decidedly against him. Still characteristically, he
went to work as if this were not the case. Lewis
Wallace was ordered forward from Crump's, in order
to strike the rebels on Sherman's right, but as the
army was pressed back, Grant seeing that his position
on coming out would be perilous without the ability
to resist the odds which could be readily thrown
against him, sent to him to return to the river road
and come in at the bridge across Snake Creek. This
consumed the day, and Wallace did not take his po-
sition by the side of Sherman until after dark.
That night the divisions of General Nelson, A.
McDowell McCook, and a part of General Thomas L.
Crittenden's arrived, crossed the river and took posi-
tions on the left of Grant's beaten army. One di-
vision of Buell's tardy force did not come up until
after the battle was finally ended on Monday.
When darkness closed the conflict on Sunday, the
Union army had been beaten back over two miles, at
ovGoO'^lc
ABBAOAM LINCOLN. 296
a great loss of life. Bat in the last assault tlie reb-
els had been repulsed, when they expected to end
their day's work by the utter destruction of the
Union army. Their commander, their best general,
a splendid soldier, Albert Sidney Johnston^ had
fallen, and it was not certun that their affairs would
go so well on the following day. The position of
the Union army was now much better, and General
Grant believed himself able to whip the rebels still,
even had not Buell come up that night. Although
ten thousand of his men had been knocked out of
the contest, with Wallace's division he could have
brought into the battle on Monday twenty-five thou-
sand men at least. He believed the rebel losses
had been very great. But Buell'e army added
greatly to his preponderance, aod at daylight he
moved forward to victory.
On Sunday night the following dispatch was
started on its way to Richmond : —
"Geneku. S. Cooper, Adjutant-Geneml :—
" We have this morning attacked the enemy in strong
position in front of Pittsburg ; and, after a severe battle
of ten houra, thanks to Almighty God, gained a complete
victory, driving the enemy from every position. The
los8 on both sides is heavy, including onr commander-in-
chief, General Albert Sidney Johnston, who fell gallantly
leading bis troops into the thickest of the fight.
" G. T. BKiDBEQAED, General Commanding."
This announcement aeems at first glance, perhaps,
to be strictly true, and there is nothing about it
ov Google
296 LIFE AND TWES OF
necessarily misleading. But from the last position
taken by the Union troops juat before night, Beaure-
gard had failed to drive them, and here he had made
a deaperate attempt, in hope of pushing them into
the river, slaughtering them, or capturing them.
Strictly speaking he had driven them from every
position except the last, where he had met a fearful
repulse, and the to-morrow would bring forth — ^he
knew not what. Beauregard's thanking Heaven for
the general success of that bloody Sunday was mere
etiquettical formality, but it serves here for record*
ing a thought on the general subject.
The Uaion soldiers were the assailanta at the first
battle of Bull Ruq, and that waa on Sunday. Some
wise men held that this was the cause of the defeat
of the national army. *' The Sabbath is the Lord's."
This fact was utterly neglected, and hence the lesson
of defeat. God sees men on the earth only in their
purposes. .It was in the heart of the rebel generals
to be the assailants on the same Sabbath morning.
Their supposed necessities outweighed their rever-
ence for Him who instituted this Day, and the rebels
inaugurated the battle, and fought from dawn until
dark on the Sabbath at Shiloh. And they won.
The riotous shouts, which in former times had dis-
tuibed the quietness of the sacred Day at " Shiloh
Church," were nothing to be compared with this.
No Sabbath since the beginning of time on the Ten-
nessee River had been like this one in the horrid
crash and suffering of war. But the rule that applied
at Manassas, according to the reasoning of some,
ovGoO'^lc
ABBAH&H UKOOLN. 297
conld not apply at Pittsbarg Landing. Yet the san-
guine and BO-called CHristian rebels said that the God
of Battles gave them the victory in both cases. The
righteonsneBB of the cause may have mitigated the
evil of disobedience at Sbiloh. There never was a
time when men did not believe that Heaven protects
all just causes. And what people at war have not
been in the right in their pretensions or belief, and
especially in their prayers ?
On the third day of May, soon after the disasters
to the R«bell)on in the valley of the Mississippi, Jef-
ferson Davis issued a fast-day proclamation in which
he said thtA they trusted in the justness of their
cause and the protection of their Qod. And the
16th of May was to be spent in prayer to dispel the
gloom of disaster, to drive sorrow from the Southern
hearthstone, to beseech the protection of the All-
powerful, and to ask that strength and victory be
given to the fresh hosts the rebels were sending
forth. Bat this kind of thing was oft repeated, and
all over the Sunny South constantly, earnestly, sadly,
joyfully, or pretentiously and flippantly, went out
the cry : "Victory, 0 Lord !" So in the North, the
sanguine and pious patriot believed that the 6od of
Battles was ranged on the side of those who would
preserve the Nation whole, however at times his face
might be overshadowed or turned aside. And the
President issued his fast and thanksgiving proclama-
tions, and the Qreat' God of Pence was importuned
day and night, in public and in private, in prose and
in verae, and with all manner of tongues, to direct
ovGoO'^lc
the battle against the B
cess the glorious caose ol
natioDal aathority, and
peace and prosperity in i
the people of the Soutl
weaker in physical mea
behind the North la the
praying. Tet it did no!
God of Battles and the
against the Yankees? (
Bebellion was not all pre
the part of the South al
to their own religious fi
the pretension and the a
result ; and in a rellgioui
burlesque on man, if not
I may be pardoned, )
but take the pains to rei
ing the suggestion here
in America (or on the ea
BO load, or noises so st
reach the spiritnal ear (
sound of the woodman's
roar of the battle-field ai
perfect faculties of God.
the temple on the moun
the spiritual All-seeing I
From the motives, th
the inward activities, He
of men. On the mind
aide of causes, God sees
ovGoO'^lc
ABRAHAM UNCOLN. 299
purpose of the ontward affairs of men and mattfir.
There it is that he cares for the falling sparrow, and
numbers the hairs of tjie head. There he takes
account of what maDoer of creature man is in the
least and the greatest thing. Do not the practices
of fnea and the facts of history belie the often gross
and material interpretations of Heaven's relation ,to
earth, of the ways of God and the ways of men ?
But the general fact, which no man can shirk, remains
the same, unaffected by this shifting in the mere
iBterpretatioD.
When Monday morning broke on the field of
Shiloh there was no indication that the victors of
the day before were ready and anxious to renew the
conflict. Before Lewis Wallace and McCIernand the
rebels now gave way, and were pressed back over
the ground they bad gained. Sherman in the center
also pressed forward, driving them before him ; and
thus affairs were turning before Buell got in on to
the left, and the rebels were apprised thnt Grant
had been re-enforced. The battle now waged with
great fury, the rebels, with skill and stubbornness,
contesting every step. But the odds against them
was now too great, and soon after noon Beauregard
gave orders for the retreat to be^n. Still, the fight-
ing went on, and was kept up until the whole army
had withdrawn from the field before four o'clock.
This retreat from the face of a fresh and powerful
army, without pursuit, was highly creditable to Gen-
eral Beauregard, and indicated the respect the Federal
Generals yet had for the fighting qualities of his
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LIFE AND TIMES OF
en army. On Tuesday Sherman started in pur-
but finding the rebels were falling back in great
ess to what was erroneously believed to be their
igly fortified position at Corinth, he returned
liloh.
'he victory was with the Union, and, perhaps,
not doubtfully so on Sunday night, even had
1 not come up wit^ hie troops, hot it had been
ly bought. In the two days' fighting Grant's
' lost in killed, wounded, and missing nearly
tn thousand men; and Buell's loss was in the
iborhood of two thousand. The rebel loss was
t twelve thousand,
leauregard now sent to Richmond this dispatch : —
" Cdsinth, Taesday, April 8, 1862.
he Secbstart of Wab, Wchmond :
We have gained a great and gtoriooa viotoiy; eight
a thonsand prisoners and thirty-six pieces of cannon.
1 re-enforced Grant, and we retired to our intrench'
s at Cori^tb, which we can bold. Iasbcs heavy on
sides. BEAnBBQARD."
labile the rebel General's report of Sunday night
mainly true, this one is mainly false, and its
e tendency was to mislead. In the sequel to
iventa just recorded, it will be especially appli-
: in showing the spirit of exaggeration which con-
td the times, whether for or against the Union.
our days after the battle of Pittsburg Landing
liloh. General Halleck arrived and took command
le army, which was soon increased to one hun-
thousand men. But not until the end of the
ov Google
ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 301
month did he start toward Coriath. He was an ex-
ceedingly cautious soldier, and believing that Grant
had committed a great mistake in not fortifying his
position at Shilob, he now fell into the opposite ex-
treme of stopping to intrench at every advance he
made toward Corinth.
The Richmond authorities had, in the meantime,
made every exertion, by conscription and otherwise,
to raise Beauregard's army to the necessary strength
to cope with Halleck ; and although over a hundred
thousand men were . collected at Corinth he was
able to keep up an eflfective force of but little over
half of the number. At last he was forced to retreat,
and surrender aU this region to the victorious Fed-
erals. And now again, notwithstanding bis railroad
communications were broken by some of Halleck's
active raiders, with great skill he succeeded in con-
veying off the main part of his stores and all his
arms of every kind, and on the 30th of May actually
slipped away with his whole army. On the same
day the Union troops entered Corinth, and found
that the place bad only been naturally stoong; the
rebel fortifications had been fictitious and inconse-
quential, a piece of information which came too late
to benefit the Union army.
The rebel army was greatly demoralized, and it
was hoped during the excitement of the retreat the
thousands of stragglers would give themselves up to
their loyal pursuers. Pope wrote to Halleck, that
from what he could gather from various sources this
would be the case, whereupon the latter, who had a
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302 LIFE AND TIMES OF
woDderfol faculty for putting ttie best end forwartt
on paper, sent this bit of fiction to Washington :—
"General Pope, with forty thoufland men, is thirty
milea aoath of Corinth, paahiag the enemy bard. He
already reports ten tiioilsand prisoners and deserters from
the enemy, and fifteen thousand staod of arms captured."
Bat Pope had not authorized such a statement,
and had only expressed it as his belief that ten
thousand of the stragglers would come in. It was-
alt a mistake; they did not come in. Beauregard
subsequently criticised this dispatch of Halleck's
with great severity, as a wicked fabricaUon ; and in
80 doing forgot his famous dispatch on the 8th of
April, when he was twenty miles from the scene of
his defeat on the previons day. The rebel authori-
ties had never been well disposed toward Beattregard,
and now the feeling was so strong against him that
from this time forward his name ceases to be of note
in the affairs of the B>ebeUioD. Nothing that he had
done justified the light in which he was held by Jef-
ferson Davb. The evidence is wanting to prove that
he was not one of the most able of the Southern'
Generals.
On the 1st of June Fort Pillow was abandoned^
and a few days later tiie rebel fleet was destroyed at
Memphis by Commodore Charles H. Davis, and that
city surrendered to him. The Mississippi was now
open to Vicksburg, and the cause of the B>ebellion in
the West looked gloomy enough. But in July Hal-
leck was taken to Washington, and the evil effects
of dispersion and the lack of a conkolUng head
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LIFE AlTD TIMES OF
tucky. The rebel aathorities had reviTed the
nal scheme of making a desperate effort to carry
war to the North. Lee, accordiogly, bad beeif
red to march into Maryland and Pennsylvania,
Bragg, who had beaten the laggard Buell to
tanooga, was directed to strike for Kentucky,
Lten Cincinnati, and capture Louisville with the
army supplies collected there. From East Teo-
je Edmund Kirby Smith entered Kentucky by
Dreek Gap, and moving with great celerity under
g's order, near Richmond struck the Union forces
r the temporary command of General M. D.
3on, Oeneriil William Nelson being absent during
greater part of the conflict, and in a series of en-
ments utterly routed them, and captured several
jand prisoners. Smith then rushed on, pushing
^thing before him, a part of his force actually
ing the Ohio River at Augusta, and with his
army throwing Cincimiati into the wUdest
:«rnation.
a the meantime Buell had discovered the real
itiona of Bragg to strike Louisville, and managed
mere accident to reach that city in time to save
om falling a prey, with all its rich booty, to
liungry horde from the South. Bragg had now
led Frankfort, where he went through the farce
tting up a new State government, without diffi-
'- finding a tool for the purpose in Richard Hawes,
iourbon County. But Bragg knew this whole
less was destined to be short-lived. Kirby Smi^
hurriedly turned his face toward the South, and
\
jvGooi^lc
ABRAHAM LINCOLN.
sweeping back tiirongh the rich Blue-gitu
where the neutrala had thna far fattened ot
the work of plander was complete.
Buell, in the meantime, had started &(
Tille to intercept Bragg, now with his wl
united, and moviog with miles of live-stock
booty toward Tennessee. Bragg was greatly
in his movements in his anxiety to save t
needed booty for which he had come, a va
of fine beef-cattle, horses, mules, and hogs
ever before marched oat of Kentucky, and 1
out higgling as to prices or a question ii
to the currency. Bragg was, besides, coi
ally slow.
At Perryville, in Boyle County, near X>
part of Buell's forces overtook Bra^, whe
perate battle was foaght on the afternoon o
of October, 1862, night closing the conflii
the rebel general knew would be renewe
succeeding morning, with the prospect of
defeat of his army and all the purposes of 1:
ture. Leaving a thousand of his wounde
field he slipped away in the night, passing
Cumberland Gap into East Tennessee, nnd
again to Chattanooga. At Cumberland Gap
expected to capture the Union force undei
George W. Moi^n, but in this he was wo
mistaken, Morgan having destroyed the Go
property and made his way through the moi
the Ohio.
Bosecrans superseded Buell, whose con
20-<i
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306 LIFE AND TIMES OF
not been satisfactory, and at once b^an to reorganize
the army at Nashville. On the 26th of December,
RoBecrans, with about forty-three thousand men, left
Nashville with a view of fighting Bragg, who was
then at Mmfreesboro, with a force numbering nearly
twenty thousand more.
Here, on the last day of December, on the banks
of the Stone River, a desperate battle wns fou^t^
the rebels being finally repulsed, with terrible slaugh-
ter, but each army holding substantjally the posiUon
it occupied at the he^nning of the contest. On New-
Year's day the two foes lay in full view of each
other, without ofiering to renew the fight. On the
2(], Bragg made another desperate assault, munly
with his division, commanded by John C. Breckin-
ridge, only a short time before Vice-President of the
United States, and who had led a part of the rebel
force at Shiloh. In a few minutes two thousand of
these brave men were cut down, and tliat night Bragg^
gave up the contest, and marched back toward Chat-
tanooga. The rebels lost in this fierce conflict nearly
fifteen thousand men; and nearly twelve thousand
of the Union army were counted as " killed, wounded,
and missing or prisoners."
Extensive rebel raids toward the North were now
at an end, as were also all hopes of aid from the
Northwest, and it was evident that henceforward the
Rebellion must be content with making the most of
its opportunities for defense, as its sides were pressed
closer together.
:b,Goo'^lc
ABRAHAM LINCOLN.
CHAPTER XIII.
1863— WAR OF THE REBELLION-ON THE POTOMAC— BAT-
TLE OF THE IRON-CLADS— LINCOLN AND McCLEL-
LAN—WILUAMSBURG— INHARMONIOUS REBELS.
ONE of the most important events of the war
occurred oq the 8th and 9th of March, 1862,
in Hampton Boads, near Fortress Monroe. At the
time of the needless, foolish, or criminal destruction
of Oosport Nary-yard, the Government anthorities
were oonstmcting there the Merrmaeh, a powerful
steam war-fhgate. In a partially wrecked condition,
this vessel fell into the hands of the rebels. They
constructed on her hull a slanting roof of heavy
timbers, and lined the whole with three layers of
inch-and-arhalf iron. Her ends were built, like her
sides. The armor extended several feet below fhe
water, and her bow, constructed for cutting the
water, had an iron ram or beab. There was con*
siderable doubt and no little uneasiness felt in the
North as to the character and utility of this untried
vessel. The Administration was at this time with
great energy pushing forward an entirely new idea in
the form of war-vessels. It was a radical departure
from all former methods of ship-building, while it
did not embrace all the advantages aimed at in the
American system. It furnished, however, the
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LIFE AND TIMES Of
[est possibly exposed surface, presented the best
itions for the concentration of projectile force,
its form was found to be best adapted to resist-
or avoiding sucb force. But the main idea of
moQitor was in its revolving turret. The first
tor, built in great haste as an offset to the Mer-
ik, oaly subserved her purpose, and illustrated
orrectness of the general principle at stake. Her
armor above the water was five inches thick,
a wood backing two feet and three inches thick.
V the water the iron mail waa not bo strong,
turret had an inside diameter of twenty feet,
nine feet high, and was made of eight thicknesses
Qe-inch iron plate. It carried two eleven-inch
only, and they were mounted side by side and
ved with the turret. The Merrimack carried
^ns, four eleven-inch guns on each side, and a
red-pound rifted Armstrong gun in each end, and
on the general plan of the European broadside
tes, with the addition of her iron mail and sloping
The Government built many other monitors
ig the war on the general plan of the first one,
r the direction of John Ericsson, the inventor.
J of them had two turrets, carrying several fif-
inch guns ; their iron armor was almost doubled ;
rapidity and safe sea-going qualities being ren-
1 very satisfnctory. Several of them, like the
tan, the Dictator, the Kalamazoo^ and the Mian-
wh were then believed to be the most powerful
vessels in the world; and it may be added here
their construction, the mere experimental trial
ovGoO'^lc
ABRAHAM UNGOLN.
of the first one on the 9th of March, went veiy far
toward settling the question of non-intervention in
About nooD on Saturday, March 8th, the Merri-
mack, accompanied by four armed steamers, came out
of Elizabeth River, and shot boldly across Hampton
Roads to assail the Federal fleet, consisting of the
Cumberland, Conffress, Minnesota, St. Latormce, and
several other war-vessels. She passed the Congren
without apparently noticing her, and received her
broadside without the slightest effect. She made
straight for the Camherland, and struck her with her
iron beak, opening a vast hole in her side, at the same
time pouring broadside after broadside into the fated
vesseL It was the work of a few moments. The
Cumberland went down, carrying a hundred of her
dead and wounded with her, her fl»g alone standing
above the water. She then turaed upon the Congress,
and that vessel was soon blown up. The Minnesota
was now hard aground in water supposed to be too
shallow for the Merrimack, and after firing a few shot
at her at a distance of a mile, and night coming on, the
rebel monster returned, escorted as she had come,
towards Norfolk. This had been a sad day to the na-
tional cause. With utter amazement the commanders
of the powerful wooden vessels saw their fearful broad-
sides, which would have blown any other ship in the
world out of the water, one after one slip harmlessly
from the rebel's sloping sides. To all appearances,
the whole American navy was at the mercy of this
rebel monster. The cities of the northern sea-board
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LIFE AND TIMES OF
chaff before her. If there was do an tried,
1 something to. cope with the Merrimaek, the
>f the Rebellion was at once removed beyond
. But see what another day brings forth !
o'clock that night Ericsson's wonderful little
under the command of Lientenant John L.
reached Fortress Monroe, and tarrying there
v moments, soon after midnight took its posi-
^he side of the Mumegoiiif still aground where
■unoc^had left her. Early on Sunday morning,
under Catesby Jones, a new commander, the
ift again made her appearance to finish the
e had begun the day before. She went up
anel in which the Mmneaota lay, and there
id her new diminutive and contemptible foe.
le monitor was soon pouring into ber solid
sighing one hundred and sixty-eight pounds,
low the turn of the rebel commander to be
The shot from his crashing broadsides- slid
\y firom the small revolving turret, and after
attempts he gave up the hope of running
itor down. The armor of the Merrmaek now
give way. She was leaking and disabled,
mander saw that she was overmatched. The
was ended. The Merrimaek again made her
ik to the navy-yatd ; and with her defeat
>wn another great hope of the Rebellion.
ii she made her appearance again in the
he rendered her builders no further sernce,
D the rebels abandoned Norfolk in May, she
wn to pieces. As for the little monitor, '
:b,GoO'^lc
J, Google
was waged on the
giDg in the drivel
going BO far as to a
tions in some parts
this position may h
erroneous and mis
work of the Goven
tary power, and he:
and this thought
military men in thi
Oulf coast, as it h
from the outset.
Bat Qoneral Mc
important position
ical incubus, and p*
Acuities in this wa;
was wholly able to
siderations at any ]
'to jeopardize the
pointment of incor
nothing of other th
quarters any other ;
ized by the same
were, and that thos
to conquer the Rt
several facts, but m
ment in the field.
McClellan had
there seemed no r<
creased te an enori
more helpless. At
ovGoO'^lc
J, Google
jvGooi^lc
ABRAHAM LISCOLN.
«ntly with the iDtentioa of moving on
Richmond, it was only to start anew boi
hopes. The very intimation that he was
vast army hastened the rebel retreat froi
Jnnction to the rear of the Rappaham
they could meet him readily, either bj
Tonte or the Chesapeake.
From Fairfax Court House, on the 13t
he wrote to the President that a plan
concluded upon in a council of his ofBce
Secretary of War telegraphed for him t
any plan that bad been agreed upon,
hour's delay, and not wait for the Pres
firmation. The plan was the same day
the President, and substantially approvt
Then began the immense work of tram
army to the peninsular region of Yiiginii
mouth of the Potomac. Nearly four hun(
were chartered by the War Departmei
' purpose, and over a month was consui
erroneous task, at an enormous expense
try, in hope that General McCIellan's
prove to be right, and the President not
for directing affairs for which he had no q
by education.
On the 14lh of March, before retracii
from Fairfax, McCIellan delivered an ad
army, in which he said that he had kepi
for a long time, in order to give the de
the Rebellion. He said the patience 01
and its confidence in him, were worl
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316 LIFE AND TIMES OF
victories. Id this singular, antediluviaa view of this
matter a very large per ceat of his anxious and dis-
satisfied countrymen did not share, however. They
were in no mood to listen to such Roman twaddle,
and would have taken the victories without the
patience or confidence. The General then went OD
to say that the period of inaction was ended, and he
was now going to bring them face to face with the
rebels. He then said that he loved the men of his
army from the depth of his heart, and that they
would do what he desired of them when they came
to meet a brave foe, and Qod would prosper the
right. Here, again, were the old promises, which
were but poorly fulfilled.
A hundred and twenty thousand men of the grand
Army of the Potomac were tninsported to Fortress
Monroe. But General McClellan at once began
the work of undesignedly overestimating the rebel
strength before him, and complaining of the troops
the President had been forced to withhold, of the
want of proper support, supplies, and the old tardy
policy was naturally resumed. Tbi? brought from
the President several letters, among which was the
following cutting review of the case : —
" Washinoton, April 9, 1862.
"My Dgab Sir, — Tour dispatches, complaining that
you are not properly sustained, while they do not offepd
me, do pain me very much.
"Blenker's division was withdrawn from yon before
you left here, and you know the pressure under which I
did it, and, as I thought, acquiesced in it— certainly not
without reluctance.
oyGcroglc
ABRAHAM UNCOLN. 317
"After you left I ascertained that less than twenty
thooBand uaorganized men, without a single field-battery,
were all yon designed to be left for the defense of Wash-
iogtoa and ManaeaaB Junction, and part of this even was
to go to General Hooker's old position. General Banks's
corps, onoe designed for Maoassas Junction, was diverted
and tied up on the line of Winchester and Btrasbui^, and
could not leave it without again exposing the Upper Poto-
mac and the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad. This presented,
or would present, when McDowell and Sumner should be
gone, a great temptation to the enemy to turn back from
the Rappahannock and sack Washington. My implicit
order that Washington should, by the judgment of all the
commanders of army corps, be left entirely secure, had
been neglected. It was precisely this that drove me to
detain McDowell.
" I do not forget that I was satisfied with yonr arrange-
ment to leave Banks at Manassas Junction; but when that
arrangement was broken np, and nothing was substituted
for it, of course I was constrained to substitute something
for it myself. And allow me (o ask : Do you really think
I should permit the line from Richmond, via Manassas
Junction to this city, to be entirely open, except what
resistance could be presented by less than twenty thousand
unorganized troops? This is a question which the country
will not allow me to evade.
" There is a curious mystery about the number of troops
now with you. When I telegraphed you on the 6th, saying
you bad over a hundred thousand with you, I had just
obtained from the Secretary of War a statement taken, as
he said, from your own returns, making one hundred and
eight thousand then with you and en route to yon. Yon
DOW say you will have but eighty-five thousand when all
en route to you shall have reached you. How can the
discrepancy of twenty-three thousand be accounted for?
"As to General Wool's command, I understand it is
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LIFE AND TIMES OF
ag for 700 preciaely what & like namber of yonr own-
i)d have to do if that command vas awaj.
" I suppose the whole foroe which has gone forward for
is with you by this time. And, if so, I think it is the
3iae time for you to strike a blow. By delay the enemy
. relatively gain upon you; that is, he will gain faster
Portifications and re-enfoi«ementa than yoa can by re-
trcements alone. And, onoe more, let me tell yon, it ts
spensable to you to strike a blow. I am powerless to
> this. You wUl do me the jusHee to remenAer I ahoayt
lUd thtU ffoing down the bay in search of a field, instead
'\ghting ai or near Manaeaaa, wot only shifiing, and not
wwn^ng, a difficuUy; thai me vxniidfind the some enemy,
the »ame or equal intrenckmente, at either place, l^e
Ury vUl not faU to note, is now noting, thai the present
UUion to move upon an intrenched enemy it bat the story
Ifonawas repeaied.
' I b^ to assure you that I have never written yoa or
cen to you in greater kindness of feeling than now, nor
I a fuller purpose to sustain you, so far as, in my most
ious judgment, I oonslstently can. But you mxui ad,
" Yours, very truly, A. LmooLN.
'Mt^or-General HcClbxax."
The President here touches the key-note to tibo'
,kness of McCIellan's plan, to which he wrongly
mitted, and for which, in a degree, he most be
1 responsible.
A. few thousand men, not over ten, under John
tfagruder, were at Yorktown, and guardiag the-
, thirteen miles long, across the peninsula formed
the York and James Rivers with the Chesapeake.
>re these McCIellan took his position, and to the
r amazement of the rebel general began to intrench
fortify when he expected him to move up with
ovGoO'^lc
ABRAHAM LINCOLN.
his army of over a handred thousand effective i
and sweep everj'thiDg before him. la all this pt
snlar campaign McClellan allowed himself to
deluded iato the idea that the whole rebel stre
was before him, and that he was not able to
with it. McClellan sent to Washington for siege^
The President, in great alann, sent back:— r
" Exccunvz Mansiok, Wabhikotoi
Msy 1, 1662.
" Ma job-Genebai, McClellan, — Your call for
rott guns from Waehiogton alarms me, chiefly becau
ai^es indefinite procrastination. le anything to be d
"A. Lincoln.'
Only two days after this the rebels s^unk ai
boasting of how five thousand men had kept at
this splendid army, with which its Qeneral had
clared he was going to give the Rebellion its de
blow. But about the five thousand men, of co
Magmder lied, a thing it was easy for him to dc
it seemed easy for everybody to do in those d
Everything appeared to take the varying staudan
the "Confederate" currency.
General Joseph E. Johnston says that Magn
had thirteen thousand men, and of the objecU
making the pretension before McClellan at Yorktt
he writes: —
" General Magrnder had estimated the importano
at least delaying the invaders until an army capabl<
coping with them could be formed ; and opposed t
with about a tenth of theip number, on a line of «
Yorhtown, intrenohed, made the left flank. This bold
ov Google
imposed apon the Federa
besiege, instead of asBailiii
resolute and judicious <
Magruder was of iDoalcul
and gave the Confederate
officer's handful to an ari
Of course, there wa
lay at Yorktown. He
trenchments. Nor was
vent bis marching dire
eral Johnston himself, i
Seven Pines, fell into t
mating the Federal fo
number of Jiis own. T
mating troops: from
rolls; from the numb(
field by actual count w
detached duties of varii
aggerated vision, passioi
occasion. The latter oi
resorted to, and the sei
diversity of ways used
rise to the numerous ut
crepancies everywhere i
of the war. The arm
either side in the field a
sixty-five to eighty per
the number on the pay-
on the field. And nol
army, even a fresh one,
Only OD the muster-rc
ovGoO'^lc
ABKAHAM LINCOTJI. 321
nnny in the field ' as the people supposed. On the
rebel side, perhaps, the cutting on the pay-roll was
even greater than on the side of the Government.
And where were all of these men, many of ^hou
daring Hie entire war never "saw service" in the
field with their regiments?
They were cooks, teamsters, nurses, helpers or
servants, choppers and diggers ; guarders of prisoners,
stations, depots, prisons, vast lines of railroads, rivers,
linet^ of communications; messengers, scouts, spies;
in Ihe captured posts on the sea-coast; provost guards,
political escorts; general loafers aroood the country,
and wounded and sick. Thus it was that a hundred
thousand men on the pay-rolls became fifty thousiind
on the field of battle.
I can hardly treat with the contempt of silence
this announcement of the event and bo forth from
General McClellan: —
" Hbab-qdabtbhb Akmt or thi Potomac, 1
May 4, 9. A. M. /
"To the Hon, Edwin M. Stanton, Secretaiy of War:—
" We have the ramparts. Have guns, ammnnitioo,
camp equipage, etc. We hold the entire Hoe of his
works, which the engineers report as being very strong.
I have thrown all my cavalry and horse-artillery in pur-
suit, supported by infiintry. I move Franklin's division,
and as moch more as I can transport by water, up to
West Point to-day. No time shall be lost. The gun-
boats have gone up York River. I omitted to state that
Gloucester is also in our poseession. I shall posh the
enemy to the wall.
"Q. B. McCleliax, Major-General."
Sl-9
ov Google
On the same da)
"Our cavalry sdc
enemy's rear-guard i
miles this side of W
Just as my aid left, G
arrived on the grout
works, though I have
" The enemy's reai
np there to answer all
" We have thus
amounts of tents, ami
their works prove to
am DOW fully eatigfied
have pursued,
"The success is br
effects will be of the g
DO delay, in following
been guilty of the mof
in placing torpedoes
Mill Springs, near tl
offices, in carpet-bags,
"Fortunately we
manner. Some fbur o
wounded. I shall m:
their own peril."
Then followed tli
" Hon. E. M. Stantok, Set
"After arranging
was urgently sent for
in front of me in str
deal than my own.
"General Hancocl
ov Google
ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 323
poised Early's rebel brigade, by a real charge with the
bayonet, taking one colonel and a hundred and fifty other
prisoners, and killing at least two colonels and many pri-
vates. His conduct was brilliant in the extreme.
"I do not know our exact loss, but fear that General
Hooker bas lost considerably on our left.
"I learn from the prisoners taken that the rebels in-
tend to dispute every step to Richmond.
" I shall run the risk of at least holding them in check
here, while I resume the original plan.
" My entire force is undoubtedly inferior to that of the
rebels, who will fight well; but I will do all I can with
the force at my disposal.
"G. B. McClellan, Major-General Commanding."
J. E. Johnston's army had indeed come up, and
of this dHy's work General Hooker wrote : " History
will not he believed when it la told that the noble
officers aod men of my division were permitted to
carry on this unequnl struggle from morning until
night, unaided, in the presence of more than thirty
thousand of their comrades with arms in their hands;
nevertheless, it is true." Hooker's loss was over
two thousand two hundred, and nearly five hundred
of that namber were killed.
But General McClellan was mistaken about Han-
cock's bayonet charge ; and, more than this, on the
morning of the 6th it was discovered that the
rebels had left Williamsburg without waiting to dis-
pute every inch of ground with a force the General
had in his usual style represented to the authori-
ties at Washington to be much superior to his own.
The rebel commander, Johnston, makes no men-
ov Google
tion of Hancock's brilli
and enys: —
"As the Federal army,
marched but nine miles to
roads, one can not understand why four, or even six divis-
ions, if necessary, were not brought into action. The
smallness of the force engaged on tbis occasion greatly
strengthened amy suspicion that the army itself was mov-
ing up York Kiver in transports."
This little aoldier sqairms aronnd among his
words a great deal in attempting to show that he
was not defeated at Williamsburg, and the " daisy "-
like reports of General McClellan were not justified
in view of the great losses under Hooker.
The rebels now abandoned Norfolk, blew ap the
Merrimack {Merrnnae) or Fwywiio, and drew their
forces towards Richmond. On the fifteenth day of
May the Federal war-steamers went up James River
to Fort Darling, eight miles below Richmond. In
the meantime McClellan slowly worked his way to
the Ghiokahominy in a somewhat circuitous route,
with a view of keeping up his connection with York
River, and by the 25th a part of his army had crossed
to the south side of that stream.
Joseph E. Johnston, who had now arrived with
his army from Mantissas and the Rappahannock, took
command of the operations to resist the advance of
the Federals. He at once proposed to Jefferson
Davis the propriety of gathering in the shortest pos-
sible time from every available source a force superior
to McClellan's, and with it defeat and destroy his
ov Google
ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 326
great army in the swamps of the Chickahominy, and
by the one grand stroke establish the cause of the
Rebellion.
' By this time Mr. Davis had. intrusted the general
saperrision of military matters to Robert E. Lee, and
neither of them was ready at that time to fall in with
Johnston's proposition, although he put it before them
at every opportnnity. After the battle of Fair Oaks
and the removal of Johnston to the West, they did,
however, of necessity, adopt his plan.
Notwithstanding the efforts of some unreliable
Southern writers then, and even at this day, to estab-
lish the statement as a truth (hat the greatest har-
mony and unanimity of sentiment existed among the
Southern leaders, nothing could have been more com-
pletely at variance with the facts in the case. From
the very outset they began to quarrel on points of
policy, but more frequently about personal matters,
and as time passed their diSerences became more in-
tense and irreconcilable. Jefferson Davis's two large
volumes are, to a great extent, taken up with an
effort to set himself right against Governor Brown,
of Georgia, Joseph E. Johnston, G. T. Beauregard,
and others, besides the general public. There was
no harmony among the rebel leaders, and there came
to be but one authority in the affairs of the Rebell-
ion. That was the will of Jefferson Davis, and the
few to whom he intrusted the execution of his will,
and whom he especially favored iu so doing.
General Johnston's notion about terminating the
war in favor of the Rebellion by the utter ruin
ovGoo<^lc
jvGooi^lc
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CHAPTE
i86a_WAR OF THE REBELLION
SHENANDOAH VALLEY— M<
SULA"— SEVEN PINES— TH
DAYS' BATTLE.
EARLY in March Stone'
S. Ewell, by instructio
a series of active opemttoni
ley, with a view of divertin
pahaQDock from his design <
After some ravei-ses they
gaioiog a decided advaatt
Milroy at a place called 1
May, and on the 25th of tl
ing General N. P. Banks a'
him to retreat from the
These untoward events t
Washington into a state of
by the ability or intention
tainly had no hope of reach
scare at Washington and tl
all the same, and nnfortunn
ident's countermanding thi
re-enforce McClellan. Thi
tressed the latter, who neT<
President and Secretary of
ovGoO'^lc
ABBA.HAU UNOOLN. 829
plaints. One of the most obvious troubles in the
imagination of McClellan was his strong desire to
have in bis army only ofScers in perfect agreement
viith him personally and politically, ns well as in a
military sense. If he had ever been in favor of or-
ganizing the army into corps, he showed great aver-
sion to this arrangement soon after his arrival on the
" Peninsula." On the 9th of May, in a very sharp
letter to Mr. Stanton, he asserted that a thousand
lives were lost at Williamsburg because of this divis-
ion into corps ; that he did not wish to be held re-
sponsible for such a state of affairs; that he must
have permission to reoiganize the corps ; and must be
allowed to drop incompetent corps commanders at once.
In reply to his dispatch Mr. Lincoln wrote this
plain and characteristic letter from Fortress Monroe,
where he had gone to see how matters were pro-,
greasing : —
"Hajo^General McOlellan: —
" My Deab Sib, — I have just assisted the Secretary
of War in framing the part of a dispatch to you relating
to army corps, which dispatch, of course, will have reached
you long before this wiH. I wish to say a few words to
you privately on this subject. I ordered the army corps
organization not only on the unanimous opinion of the
twelve generals whom you had selected and assigned as
generals of divisions, but also on the unanimous opinion
of every military man I could get an opinion from, and
every modern military book, yourself only excepted. Of
course, I did not on my own judgment pretend to under-
stand ttie subject. I now think it indispensable for you
ov Google
330 LIFE AND 1
to know how yoar struggle ag
tere which we can not entire
upon as merely an effort to pi
to persecute and degrade the
bad no word from Sumner, 1
commanders of these corps are.
oEBcers with you ; but I am c(
no consultation or communic
consult aud communicate wit
John Porter, and, perhaps, Gi
say these complaints are true
is proper you should know c
commanders of corps disobey j
" When you relieved Get
mand, the other day, you ther
least one of your best frieai
let me say, not as applicable
ators and Representatives spe
they please without question, i
must cease addressing insultin
oo greater liberty with them.
"But to return. Are yo
strong enough even with my 1
the necks of Sumner, Heintzel
This is a practical and very b<
"The success of your army
try are the same, and of cours
the cause. Yours trul;
Nothing could check G
plaints, or his disposition tc
or the other. On the 26th
President : —
" Have arranged to carry
are quietly closing in upon tb
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J, Google
332 LIFE AND TIMES OF
Junction Monday morning to re-enforoe Jackson. I am
painfully impressed with the importanoe of the strug^e
before yon, and shall aid you all I can cousistently with
my view of due regard to all poiote."
On reachiDg the Chickahominy General MeGIel-
lan's first busineas was to rebuild the bridges, which
had been destroyed by the rebels Id their retreat.
About thirty thousand of his troops were at ooce
passed over to the south side of the stream, the right
and left extremes of the army now being several
miles apart. This very treacherous river, or creek,
with extensive swamps on both sides of it, now cut
the Federal army in two, with the weaker part on
the side next the rebel troops, and wholly beyond
the chance of succor in case of a sudden rise of water.
Johnston now seeing his opportunity, a great rain
having fallen on the night of the 30th of May, pre-
pared to fall upon what he seemed to think was
only Keyes's Corps of the Federal army on the south
side of the Chickahominy. Although his arrange-
ments appeared to be accurate enough for his purpose,
they were not successfully carried out, and not until
toward the middle of the afternoon was he ready to
begin the attack. General Silas Casey, with about
five thonsand of Keyes's Corps, was in advance at
Fair Oaks, and the other division was some distance
in the rear, at the point called " Seven Pines," under
General Darius M. Couch. Still to the rear of these
was the corps of General Heintzelman. Althongh,
to some extent, protected by intrenchments and abatis,
Casey's weak division was partially surprised, and
ovGoO'^lc
ABRAHAM LINCOLH. 333
soon gave way^ leaving their gnns and camp equipage
behind them, and rushing in much disorder to the
rear of Coaoh, whose division shared the same fate,
but after a stabhom resistance. Longstreet and
D. H. Hill had, up to this time, been engaged on the
rebel side. Gustavns W. Smith, accompanied by
Johnston, came in as night approached, in an attempt
to cut the Federals from their river oommnnicationa.
A considerable part of Heintzelman's Corps had eome
to the aid of Conch. But an event not in the rebel
GenerAl'a calculations now occurred. The river had
been rising all day, and the chances were favorable
to the complete realization of his hopes, the destruc-
tion of the Federal force on the south of the Chick*
ahominy. McClellan, who was sick on the other
side of the river, was not ignorant of tiie dangerous
position into which he had allowed hia army to fall,
and soon after the battle began ordered Sumner to
move acrosii with his, corps. An hour before night
he succeeded in getting across the already partially
floating bridge General John Sedgwick's division,
and, subsequently, the other division, commanded by
General I. B. Richardson, crossed over with great
difficulty. Guided by the sound of the battle, Sum-
ner pushed forward with Sedgwick's division through
the swamps and woods, and, with great fiiry, fell
upon the flank of the rebel force moving to gain the
rear of the discomfited Union troops at Bottom's
Bridge. Here the rebels were repulsed and driven
back with heavy loss, when night closed upon the
contest.
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S34 UFE AND TIHES OF
At serea o'clock General Johnstoa was wouaded
and carried from the field, Gustavus W. Smith biio-
ceedtng to the temporary command of the rebel army.
Jefferson Davis and General Lee had, during the hat
hour or two, been on the field, the former directing
some of the movements. The next morning the
battle was renewed, but not with the former vigor
and resolution on the part of the rebels, and by noon
they were repulsed and driven from the field. They
had failed under very fortunate circumstances.
The battle of Seven Pines, or Fair Osks, was
ended. At this juncture Robert E. Lee took com-
mand of the rebel army in Virginia, and began his
history with it.
In the three corps, Keyes's, Heintzelman's, and
Sumner's, engaged in the two days' fighting. General
McCleiino reported a total loss of five thousand seven
hundred and thirty-nine men, eight hundred and
ninety having been killed, and thirty-two hundred
and twenty-seven being wounded. The rebel loss,
according to the report of General Johnston, was
forty-two hundred and thirty-three.
Two or three days after this battle a considerable
force of the Union troops advanced to within four
miles of Richmond. It was well known some time
subsequently that if McClellan bad pushed forward
his magnificent army, which he foolishly and boyishly
"almost believed invincible," even after the "seven
days' battles," before Lee had received re-enforce-
ments and reorganized the rebel forces, he conld have
taken Richmond, and if not simplified the conflict for
ovGoO'^lc
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336 UFE AND TIMES OF
time and attention from tbe army uader your immediate
command, I would be glad to Iiave your views as to the
present etate of military aflairs throoghout tbe vhole
country, as you say you would be glad to give tbem. I
would rather it should be by letter than by telegraph,
because of the better chanoe of secrecy. As to the num-
bers and positions of the troops not under yonr command,
in Virginia and elsewhere, even if I could do it with ac-
curacy, which I can not, I would rather not transmit
either by telegraph or letter, because of tbe chances of its .
reaching the enemy. I would be very glad to talk with
you, but you can not leave your camp, and I can not well
leave here. A. Lincoln, President
" Uajor-General Georox B. McClellam."
For several weeks circumstances, over which the
Qeneral had not very complete control, prevented
his giving to the Administration and the country
the benefit of his views on the political conduct of
the war. But he did not forget his privil^e from
his *' Excellency," aa he called Mr. Lincoln, and
when another quiet spell came on the James Biver
be sent tbe following wonderful letter to the Pres-
ident:—
" Me. President, — You have been fully informed
that the rebel army is ia the front, with the purpose of
overwhelming us by attacking our positions or reducing
UH by blocking our river communications. I can not but
regard our condition as critical, aud I earnestly desire, in
view of possible oontiagenoies, to lay before your excel-
lency, for your private consideration, my general views
concerning the existing state of tbe Bebellion, although
they do not strictly relate to the situation of this army, or
ovGoO'^lc
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338 LIFE AND TIMES OF
demeanor by tb« miliUry towards citisens pvomptly re-
buked. Military arresta ehoald not be tolerated, except
ID places where active hostilities eiist; aad oaths, not re-
quired by enactmentB, Oonstitiitionally made, should be
Deither demanded nor reoeived.
"Military government should be confined to the pres-
ervation of pablio order and the protection of politioal
right. Military power should not be allowed to interfere
with the relations of servitade, either by supporting or
impairing the authority of the master, except for repressing
disorder, as in other cases. Slaves, contraband under the
act of Congress, seeking military protection, should receive
it. The right of the Government to appropriate perma-
nently to its own service claims to slave-labor should be
asserted, end the right of the owner to compensation there-
for should be recognized. This principle might be ex-
tended, upon grounds of military necessity and security, to
all the slaves of a particular State, thus working manumis-
sion iu such Slate; and in Missouri, perhaps in Western
Virginia also, and possibly even in Maryland, the expe-
diency of such a measure is only a question of time. A
system of policy thus Constitutional, and pervaded by tb«
influences of Christianity and freedom, would receive the
support of almost all truly loyal men, would deeply im-
press the rebel masses and all foreign nations, and it might
be humbly hoped that it would commend itself to the fiivor
of the Almighty,
"Unless the principles goTeming^tbe future conduct of
our struggle shall be made known and approved, the effort
to obtain requisite forces will be almost hopeless. A dec-
laration of radical views, especially upon slavery, will rap-
idly disintegrate our present armies. The policy of the
Government must be supported by eoncentrationB of mili-
tary power. The national forces should not be dispersed
iu expeditions, posts of occupation, aud numerous armies,
but should be mainly collected into masses^ and brought
ovGoot^lc
ABRAHAM LmOOLN. 339
to bear apon the armiosof the Confederate States. Those
armies thoroaghl; defeated, the political struoture which
they support would soon cease to exist. .
" In carryiDg out any system of policy which you may
fom), you will require a commander-in-chief of the army,
ODe who possesses yoar confidence, nnderstaods your ^-lewe,
and who is oompetent to exeonte your orders, by directing
the military forces of the Nation to the aooomplishment of
the objects by you proposed. I do not ask that place for
myself. I am willing to serve you in such pORition as
yon may assign me, and I will do so as ftdthfully as ever
subordinate served superior.
"I may be on the Brink of eternity; and as I hope
forgiveness from my Malier, I have written this letter
with sincerity towards you and. from love for my country.
" Very reapeotfully, your obedient servant,
" George B. McClellan,
Major-Geoeral CommaDding.
"His Excellency A. LnooLK, PreBident."
This is the most remarkable letter written by «
soldier, worthy of note, daring the war, appealing to
official and pablic respect. On first view the last
paragraph of the letter disarms criticism, and startles
feelings of mingled pity and contempt. It is the
highest appeal, where the common sentiment of man-
kind demaods silence. Bat when the numerous prom-
ises, pretensions, flighty statements, and complaints of
0.eneral McCIellan are taken into account, this putting
himself on record with his Maker is not startling, and
the mere fact of his doing so should not be allowed
to lead judgment captive, as such things often do,
and as they are not unfrequently designed to do.
Still there is nothing, perhaps, criminal in this letter^
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UFE AND TIMES OF
arriDg of systematic apology, if such thing
)e made worthy of respect. Nor is there any
' asserting or believing that the last paragraph
leral McGlellan's letter was not written with
nest coDviction of its truth. The letter is
a piece of vanity, if no more. It was so in
it of that day ; and it did not cease to be so
light of all subsequent events. It does not
iserve analysis, more than the thousands of
and worse spirited things, which served to
late pnblic affairs, and nndesignedly or do-
y ohstract the rightful progress of events, and
the caose of the country. Beyond detnon-
', the man's character and his nnfitness for the
I he occupied, and the troubles of the Admin-
n, it is a mere matter of curiosity and ridicule
ng from the General of the " invincible army "
Potomac, and for these objects has it been re-
)d here.
the second day of June, 1862, Qeneral
Ian issued this address to his army :-—
Idiers of the Army of the Potomac ! I have ful-
leaet a part of my promise to you. You are now
Tace with the rebels, who are held at bay in iroDt
capital. The final and decisive battle is at band.
^ou belie your past history, the result can not be
QOment doubtful. If the troops who labored so
y and fought so gallantly at Yorktowo, and who
ely won the hard fights at Willlatnebnrg, West
lanover Court House (Fitz John Porter's raid),
r Oaks, now prove themselves worthy of their sq-
■£, the victory is surely ours.
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-'•'■^^i^l^^
342 LIFE AND TIMES OF
the rebel tixmy was ready to meet him, and his case
had actually become desperate. It hnd, perhaps,
been a misfortane to the cause of the comitry that
McDowell was unable to bring his vast force to op-
erate with McClellita before Kichmond. But the
rebel management had been superior, and to some
extent their generalship.
That it was always the intention of the Adminis-
tration to send not only McDowell but all other
troops as they could and should be spared to McClel-
lan, no right-minded person, probably, ever doubted.
On the 23d of May, the President and the Secretary
of War visited the camp of McDowell at Fredericks-
burg, and then it was arranged that McDowell
should move to form the junction with this trouble-
some officer on Monday, the 26th.
In the memitime the operations of Stonewall Jack-
son in the Shenandoah Valley threw the authorities at
Washington and the people of the loyal States into
an intense excitement. Not only were the gover-
nors urged by the Seoretary of War to send to Wash-
ington all their volunteers and militia, and all the
railroads taken possession of by order of the Presi-
dent to be turned on a moment's warning to the
exclusive needs of the Government, but nil available
troops from West Virginia were started for the valley,
and McDowell's movement towards Richmond was
stopped, and himself with the great part of his army
started after Jackson. To this useless task Mc-
Dowell turned with a heavy heart, but with the
obedience and expedition of a tme soldier. He
b,GoO'^lc
[GOLH. 343
be out of his reach
im, but ID this he wua
>ugh Jackson did whip
I and Front Royal, and
osteraation before him
retreat managed with
p back his pursuers at
ic, he had no notion of
gtoD, nor even to cross
•88 and unwise scare at
verted McBowell from
ne of his divisions did
, niore disappointed in
le liked McClellan and
) addition of his whole
it, to the Army of the
mond would be sealed,
r ceased to push the
tiis words at least show
as to the commaQd he
I was about the aaccor
cess. On the 21st of
resident : —
)re we occupy Richmond,
16 railroad to Fredericks-
This feet, my snperior
>f the sixty-second artiele
under my orders, unless
t>y your excellency."
arassed Lincoln in one
inj, reiterated : "You
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jvGooi^lc
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LIFE AND TIMES OF
omit, no opportunity to send 70a re-enforcemeDts
I possibly can. A.. Lihcoiai."
le 20lh of June, 1862, QeDeral McGleUaa
the strength of his army present for duty
'2; OQ special duty, etc., 12,225; and absent
igh, and so forth, 29,5X1. And with this
ce, he snid as soon as Providence vould
im to do so he would begin to fight the
id take their town and other things,
lence did not keep him mnch longer idle,
he night of the 25th of June be had moved
qnarters to the south side of the Chicka*
ind the greater part of. his army was also
e. With the other side he communicated
ichmond and York River Railroad, and by
lod bridges he hitd constmcted ; and on that
till had the right wing of his army stretch-
) Mechanics ville, this place being the out-
Fitz John Porter's corps lying along in the
lis point toward the bridge connecting him
main army. Although his army was di<
:his way by the Chickahominy, his facilities
nication were good ; and in view of the turn
lirs which now followed, this arrangement
ce was fortunate. His concentration on the
e of the river had been made with the
arpose of operating against Richmond, aad
ae had allowed nearly a month to pass since
of Fair Oaks, in which time Lee had col-
army nearly equal to his own, it was even
0 late for htm to execute his original design.
ovGoO'^lc
AJB&AHAH LINCOLN. 847
At alt eventa, under a leas timid and more ener-
getic commander, the case was not hopeless then.
After the battle of Fair Oaks Richmond wtts at his
mercy, bat now it was well fortified. Yet Lee's
main army was north of the Chickahominy, and the
tliree divisions (about twenty-five thousand men) of
it on the other side; McClellaa could have assailed
and overwhelmed it, and have fallen upon the main
body from before Richmond, Porter's corps keeping
it at bay in the meantime. This would, at any mte,
have furnished him a field for the last or final strug-
gle, which he had so long promised his army.
But General McClellan's thougfato were turned in
another . direction. From bis bead-quartera to the
James River, at Harrison's Landing, it was seven-
teen miles, and a week before he had ordered prep-
arations to be made for sending supplies from York
River to the James, so that if he was driven to ,cut
his connection with his former base and retreat to
the latter stream he would there find supplies and
the aid of the gun-hoats. The ehimge of the depot
of supplies from York to James River, however,
when it came, was not a volontary " change of base ''
merely with General McGlellan. It was what he
considered a forced necessity. It was a retreat, a
timid running by day and night from what he repre-
sented as a superior rebel force of two hundred thou-
sand men. It may have been gratifying at the time
to talk of McClellan's " change of base," but this
piece of insincerity could not become a part of the
true history of the war. So soon as he fully decided
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J, Google
ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 349
before the rebels ciime tip. A desperate bsttle en-
sued. Twice Porter was compelled to send to Qeo-
eral McClellaa for re-enforcements. The Union
forces were everywhere beaten back, and eight or
nine thousand men were lost. That night Porter
sncceeded in crossing the river and destroying the
bridges after him.
During this day Oeneral Lee found, to his ntter
disappointment and amazement, that McClellan had
actually given up his York River *'base," and was
making with all his ability for the James. This
state of affairs put the rebel General at great disad-
vantage. Indeed, it was now evident that be had
already failed in his purpose, and had done about all
he could do in preventing the retreat of an army not
greatly outnumbering his own, an army encumbered
with a vast train and several thousand head of cattle
stretching out one-half of the whole distance to Har-
rison's Landing. Notwithstanding the bulk of his
army was now on the wrong side of the Chicka-
hominy, which he could not cross without repairing
the bridges, Lee still believed be would be able to
thwart the undertaking of the Union Oeneral. He
was mistaken and outgeneraled, and he was now not
only unable to throw any obstruction in the way of
McClellan's retreat, but in the five days of the pur-
suit met little else than disaster himself, notwith-
standing the thousands of blue overcoats and other
superabundance of the Union army cast along the
way for his benefit.
Saturday, the 28th, McGlellan was mainly
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360 LIFE AND TOSSS OF
nnmoldstocl in his retreat. A little artilleiy practice
and skirmiBhing were all, and otherwise the vast
train, and the army of which, a little while ago,
McCIellan had said, ''we are inviDcible," he almost
believed, went quietly on its coarse. The most con-
siderable obstacle in the way of the retreating army
was White-oak Swamp, bat this was bridged, and
after an engagement c^ no great importance at Sav-
age's Station, on Smiday evening the rear of the
army nnder Bumner passed over, destroying the
bridge after it. Still JeQerson Davis, and most of
the rebel leaders thought they had all the time and
means they needed for bagging the retreating foe.
Every effort was pat forth to intercept him, but it
did iiot avail. Stonewnll Jackson, A. P. Hill, D. H.
Hill, John Bankhead Magmder, James Longstreet, J.
E. B. Stuart, and a host of other fiery rebels were in
hot pursuit, hU eager to pierce the Union line, but the
game glided beyond their reach. McCIellan never
lost the advantage with which he started.
Toward evening on Momlay, at Frazier's Farm, a
severe fight took place, but the rebels were kept at
bay, and made no advance in disoi^anizing or break-
ing the long Federal line. And that night McCIellan
reached Malvern Hill near the James. Here ar-
rangements were made to check the pursuers. Mal-
vern Hill is an elevated plateau less than a- mile in
width, but two or three miles long, gradually sloping
to the river and to the open country. This naturally
strong position, which could not be turned, McCIellan
hastily fortified, and while he still prepared for a
ov Google
ABBAHAM LINGOLN. 351
farther tUArch of six or seven tBilds to Harrison's
Landing, awaited the assault of the rebels without a
doubt of the result.
The sixth day had now come, Tuesday, July Ist,
since the fighting began. It was late in the day
before the rebels arrived and began to face the work
they had before them. It was a grim prospect. The
guns of the whole Federal army bristled above them
ready to sweep the open declivity up which they
would be compelled to move, if they moved at all.
With the gun-boats in their renr, the Union forces
lay in a semicircle on the brow of the hill, eager for
the onset This sight roust have shaken the faith
of General Lee. The question of McClellan's escape
was not now doubtful; and neither good generalship
nor respect for the Uvea of his own men had any-
thing to do with Lee's determination to attempt to
drive the Union army fVom this position. It was
not a demoralized army ready to run or throw down
its arms.
liee ordered the attack to be roade, but even
as late as six o'clock, when it really began with de-
termination, mieunderstanding and n lack of zeal
characterized the movements of the rebels. Some of
their best commands did not participate, and those
that did make the assault were slaughtered or driven
like chaff before the circle of flame which poured
down upon them. A half dozen such assaults, while
affecting the Federals but little, would have destroyed
the rebel army, and opened the way for McClellan
to Richmond. The task was impossible, and it was
:b,GoO'^lc
jvGooi^lc
ABBAUAM UNGOLN. 363
described in General Lee's official report, I can not for-
bear mentioD of a m&ladruit performance just before tbeir
teriniDatioD, but for vhich I have always tbought that
McCtellao's army would have been further driven, even ' to
the wall,' and made to Burreoder— a trifling matter in it-
Hti f apparently, and yet worthy of thoughtful conaideratJon.
Gtiueral McClelian had retreated to Harrison'a Landing;
his army, Mi|)piy,anil baggage trains were scattered in much
confusion in and about Westover plantation; our army'
was moving down upon him, its progress much retarded by
natural and artificial obstacles ; General Stuart was in ad-
vance, in command of the cavalry. In rear of and around
Westover there is a range of hills or elevated ground,
completely commanding the plains below. Stuart, glo-
rious Stuart 1 always at the front and fiill of fight,
gained these hills. Below him, as a panorama, appeared
the camps and trains of the enemy, within easy range of
his artillery. The temptation was too strong to be re-
sisted; he commanded some of his guns to open fire. The
ooDstemation caused thereby was immediate and positive.
It frightened the enemy, but it enlightened him.
" Those heights in oar possession, the enemy's position
was altogether untenable, and he was at our mercy ; un-
less they could be recaptured his capitulation was inevita-
ble. Half a dozen shells from Stuart's battery quickly
demonstrated this. The enemy, not slow in comprehend-
ing his danger, soon advanced his infantry in force, to
dislodge our cavaliy and repossess the heights. This was
accomplished ; the hills were ibrtified, and became the
Federal line of defense, protected at each flank by a bold
creek, which emptied into James River, and by the heavy
batteries of the fleet anchored opposite. Had the infantry
been up, General Lee would have made sure of this
naturally strong line, fortified it well, maintained it against
assault, and dictated to General McClelian terms of sur-
render; and had the attention of the enemy not been so
23— Q
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AyFAHAM LINCOLN.
CHAPTER XV.
186S-WAR OF THE REBELLION— McCLELLAN AT HAR-
RISON'S LANDING — EVACUATION OF THE PENIN-
SULA—LINCOLN AND McCLELLAN— AN INDEFENSIBLE
CAREER— THE GREAT GENERAL NOT YET FOUND.
IN the week's fighting and niTining from Mectianics-
ville to Harrison's Landing General McGlellan
lost, according to his own report, one thousand five
hundred and eighty-two killed, seven thousand seven
hundred and nine wounded, five thousand nine hun-
dred and fifty-eight missing, tn all fifteen thousand
two hundred and forty-nine men. This was, in all
probability, a low estimate, and probably did not in-
clude the sick left behind in the hospitals. There
is, perhaps, no indubitable evidence that the rebels
did not suffer a loss even greater, although the Tacts
were mainly concealed. On the 3d of July Mo-
Clellan reported to the Secretary of War that he
supposed he had not then left with their colors over
fifty thousand soldiers of all the invincible host
landed with him on the Peninsula. This was start-
ling, and the strange discrepancies it suggested, as
well as other considerations, induced President Lin-
coln to go all the way to Harrison's Landing to see
for himself the condition of the army. And only
four days after MoQellan had made this frightful
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366 UFE AND TIMES OF
report it was found that there were about eighty-
eight thousand soldiers present at the Iiaoding.
Thus an enormous gap was filled. But on the 20th
of June there were about one hundred and fifteeD
thousand men present for duty on the Chickahominy.
Then, if fifteen or even twenty thousand were lost in
the " seven days' battles " and retreat, there would
still remain a discrepancy of from seven to fifteen
thousand men, and no clew to these can readily be
found, unless it is in the amazing supposition that
they had been dent oflT on furlough on the very eve
of the battles and retreat. Even after Mr. Lincoln's
visit, there was some dispute about McClellan's
strength, which gtive rise to the following letter: —
" EZKDTITB MANtlON, Wabhihoton, 1
" July 13, 1862. (
" My Dear Sir, — I am told that over one hundred
aod sixty thousand men have gone with your army on the
Peninsula. When I was with you the other day, we made
out eighty-six thousand remaining, leaving seventy-three
thousand five hundred to be accounted for. I believe
three thousand five hundred will cover all the killed^
wounded, and missiog, iu all your battles and skirmishes,
leaving fifty thousand who have left otherwise. Not more
than five thousand of these have died, leaving forty-five
thousand of your army still alive, and not with it I be-
lieve half or two-thirds of them are fit for duty to-day.
Have you any more perfect knowledge of this than I
have ? If I am right, and you bad these men with you,
you could go into Richmond in the next three days. How
can they be got to yon, and how can they be prevented
from getting away in auoh numbers in the future?
"AbRABAH LiHOOIJi."
ovGoO'^lc
ABBAHAU LINCOLN. 367
This brought the statement from the General that
over tiiirty-four thousand of his men were ahsent on
furlough by permission, and over three thousand
were absent without permission ; and of the more
than thirty-eight thousand thus absent he thought
one-half, at least, was fit for active duty. Lee in his
report says very truly that "the si^e of Rich-
mond was raised, and the object of a campnign, which
had beeQ prosecuted after months of preparation, at
an enormous expenditure of men and money, com-
pletely frustrated." And in referring to McClellan's
losses he says: "His losses in battle exceeded our
own, as attested by the thousands of dead and
wounded left on every field, while his subsequent in<
action shows in whnt condition the survivors reached
the protection to which they fled."
But the latter part of this statement was merely
begging the case, nnd was trifling and nnwise on the
part of Lee, as be knew then, as everybody else did,
that McClellan's inactiTity never could have been
taken for a sign of the weakness of his army. The
soarces of his inaction must be sought elsewhere.
Bis activity was most displayed in his letters and
dispatches, and in his retreat. If McClellan's army
was not strong enough to fight Lee and maintain its
position, then it was a military necessity to retreat
to the York or the James. On the slightest
grounds he hlways seemed disposed to exaggerate or
really fancy the rebel force greater than his own. At
Richmond he waited on account of Providence and
other things, nntil he said the rebel army was perhaps
ov Google
3£8 LIFE AND TIMES OF
two hundred thousand strong; and under some
such impression he started to secure himself down at
James River. In overestimating the rebel strength,
however, McGlellan only displayed a common fault
among Northern people. The spirit of exaggeration
ruled the time, and where it is not openly seen, it
lurks throughout current narrative and record, so
that the task of the historian is not only difficult and
irksome, but also sometimes doubtful io the end. It is
probably a fact that the rebels were never able dnriog
the war to gather into one army for single combat a
hundred thousand soldiers. And they never did so,
even if they were able to spare them from the various
salient points in the vast boundary they undertook
to defend.
McGleUan's retreat to the James River from an
army even less numerous than his own was regarded
by fore^ soldiers, and by most of his countrymen,
as a brilliant and wonderful feat. This much has
been already intimated here. Rut this brilliant re-
treat was no compensation for the utter future of the
" Peninsular Campaign." And even the little credit
due him for this successfnl retreat was greatly modi-
fied by the state of his army during the last seren
miles, and its defenseless condition for a day or two
after the difficult journey was over. He was not al-
lowed to go to the " Peninsula" for the purpose of mak-
ing glorious retreats. He had selected Ms owit 6eld.
and in it he had held out the idea that he would in
one gnmd stroke crush the Rebellion. Nothing had
been withheld from him whioh oould be given. . But
ovGxx:)'^lc
ABBA.HAH LINCOLN. 3S9
on the " Fetunaula " he resumed the undecided aad
dilatory habits which had distinguished him on the
Potomac. From first to last his cry was for more
troops, nnd yet he kept on furlough nearly ooe-fonrth
of his army, and was never able to bring into action
half of the men who had muskets in their bands.
But once were his troops massed during the cam-
paign, at Malvern Hill, and there they were in-
Tincible, indeed. And at Malvern Hill all admiration,
even on f^e part of the panegyrists of fine retreats,
must cease. From that point to Harrison's Landing
and for a day afterwards he had no army, but only a
disorganized mass of men, horses, cattle, wjigoos, and
materiiils of war.
Why did General McOlellan continue his retreat
below Malvern Hill ? Of course, his " base " was
better on the river at Harrison's Landing, but at the
former place his communications were complete, and
he had the iud of the gun-boats. Malvern Hill was
seven miles nearer Richmond if he wanted to go
there, and even in his temporary defenses there it
was apparent he could whip the rebels whenever they
chose to assail him. They could have interfered
with his communications more readily at that point
on the river, but still this only begs the case. His
general officers were unanimously opposed to retreat-
ing beyond or giving up Malvern Hill. Even his
favorite, Fitz John Porter, was bitterly against it.
And when the order came to abandon this position
after repulsing the rebels with great slaughter, and
demonstrating its superior advantages it is easy to
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360 LIFE AND TIMES OF
imagine the indignation and amazement of the brave
men who never had any heart in the retrogressioa
from the outset. In the midst of a groap of these
astonished and disappointed officers General Kearny
made t^e following speech : " I, Philip Kearny,
an old soldier, enter my solemn protest against this
order to retreat. We ought, instead of retreating, to
follow up the enemy abd take Richmond. And, in
fnll view of all the responsibility of such a declara-
tion, I say to you all that such an order can only
be prompted by cowardice or treason.' And the
brave old soldier's sentiment was echoed from many a
sore heart.
Now for a brief view of McClellan's coarse
toward the authorities at Washington, and his de-
parture from the .Peninsula.
On the very day before the battle of Mechanics-
ville, McClellan called for re-enforcements ; and on
the next day the President dispatched, as has been
seen : —
"I give you all I oao, and act on the presumption
that you will do the best you oao with what yon have ;
while yon coDtinue, UDgenerously I think, to assume that
I could give you more if I would. I have omitted, I
shall omit, do opportunity to send you re^nforcemeats
whenever I can,"
On the 28th the General in great heat sent the
following communicatiou to Washington : —
"I now know the full history of the day. On this
side of the river (the right hank) we repulsed several
ovGoO'^lc
ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 361
strong attacks. On the left bank oar men did all that men
could do, all that soldiers could accomplish, bat they were
overwhelmed by vastly superior numbers, even after I
brought my last reserves into action. The loss on both
sides is terrible. I believe it will prove to be the most
desperate battle of the war. The sad remnants of my men
behave as men. Those battalions who fought most bravely,
and suffered most, are still in the best order. My regulars
were superb; and I oonnt upon what are left to turn another
battle, in company with their gallant comrades of the vol-
unteers. Had I twenty thousand, or even ten thousand,
fresh troops to use to-morrow, I could take Richmond; but
I have not a man in reserve, and shall be glad to cover my
retreat and save the material and personnd of the army.
"If we have lost the day, we have yet preserved onr
honor, and no one need blush for the Army of the Potomac,
I have lost this battle because my force was too small.
" I again repeat that I am not responsible for this, and
I say it with the earnestness of a General who feels in his
heart the loss of every brave roan who has been needlessly
sacriBced to-day. I still hope to retrieve our fortunes;
but to do this the Government must view the matter in
the same earnest light that I do. You must send me veiy
large re-enforcements, and send them at once. I shall
draw back to this side of the Chickahominy, and think I
oan withdraw all our material. Please understand that in
this battle we have lost nothing bnt men, and those the
best we have.
" In addition to what I have already said, I only wish
to say to the President that I think he is wrong in re-
garding me as ungenerous when I said that my force was
too weak. I merely intimated a truth which to-day has
been too plainly proved. If, at this instant, I could dis-
pose of ten thousand fresh men, I cniild gain the victory
to-morrow.
'* I know that a few thousand more men would hav«
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362 LIFE AND TIMES OF
ohftDged this battle from a defeat to a viotoiy. As it is,
the GovenimeDt must not and can oot hold me reaponaible
for the result.
" I feel too earnestly to-night. I have seen too many
dead and wounded comrades to feel otherwise thao that
the Qoveroment has Dot sustuoed this army. If yoa do
not 90 now, the game is lost.
" If I save this army now, I tell yoa plainly that I owe
no tbaaks to yon, or to any other persona in Washington.
" You have done your best to sacrifice this army.
" G. B. McClellan.
"Hod. £. H. Stastok."
Telegraphic communications were now broken,
And no reply was ever made to this immodest, iU-
tempered, untrue, and unsold ier-like letter. Had it
b^en the work of a boy or a woman, a long'SafTering
and patient Executive might have found less diffi-
culty in foi^ving it. Long ago McClellan had taught
Mr. Lincoln the virtue of his characteristio traits of
forbearance and patience. In the heat of battle and
defeat, some may be able to find an apology for this
letter ; but in view of OeDeral McClellan's treatment
by the President and the Secretary of War, as well as
in view of his being a soldier and a mnn responsible
to his G-ovemment and country, the task would be
difficult. Without notice of the bad character of this
communication the President wrote on the same day,
only correcting one erroneous statement, the foUow-
ii^ reply : —
** WAaamaroti, Jane 28, 1862.
"Save your army at all events. Will send re-enforoe-
mente as fast as we can. Of course they can not reach
you to-day, to-morrow, or next day. I have not said you
ovGoO'^lc
ABRAHAM LINO
were QDgeneroas for sayiag yoa n
I thought you were ungenerous ii
not send them as fast as I could.
to yoa and your army quite as kee
aelf. If you bave had a drawn bi
the price we pay for the enemy no
We protected Washington and the
you. Had we stripped Wasbingtoi
DpoD us before the troops sent <
Less than a week ago you notified
were leaving Kichmond to ooue in
nature of the case, and neither yoi
is to blame. Al
This over-charitable and soi
correct the evil ia McClellan, ^
peated his letter of the 28th in
On the 1st of July Mr. Line*
" It is impossible to re-enibro<
emergency. If we bad a million of
them to yoa in time. We have noi
yoa are not strong enough to fao
find a place of seonrity, and wait, r
tain yonr ground if you can, but
events, even if yoa &1I back to F
have strength enough in the oonntr
So soon ds General McClella
River he began to pour in his
mands for more troops. Mr, Lii
this remarkable letter (an appeal
must I say, a military "crank?")
"Wii
*' Your dispatch of yesterday in
your army is having some rest. 1
ov Google
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a LINCOLN. 30S
I withio a month, or even six
ditioD to that arrived aod now
: (about ten thousand men, I
insaDd I hope you will have
&nd about five thousand from
not see how I can send you
1. Under these circumstances,
lent, must be your only care,
e you are, if you can, aqd,
1 must. You, on the ground,
lich you will attempt, and of
I but give it as my opinion,
-boats and the re>enforcements
old your present position ; pro-
iin keep the James Hiver open
t tolerably confident you can
n, you had better remove oa
. remember that you have ex-
I to the danger of having your
river below you, yet I do not
your attention.
T, A. Lincoln.
^ou feel able to take the offen-
from doing so. A. L."
the General's long days of
famous letter of the 7th of
chapter, on the political
the war. Of this remark-
resident took no note, and
me way, the General never
)ops, and his expressions of
s capture of Richmond, etc.
1862, HaUeck had been put
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SM LIFE AND -miES OF
in oommaod of all Uie land forces of the United
States. Qenerai Halleck's operutioDS in the West
had pliiced him high in the esteem of the Adminis-
trattoD, and it was hoped someUiiDg would come out
of his general directaoQ of military affairs. The day
of eKperiment was not yet passed. The General-in-
Ghief also visited McClelian at Harrison's Landing,
but did not find things to his satasfactioD.
Toward the close of July McClelian sent, by
Halleck's suggestion, a considenible' reconooitering
force to Malvern Hill, and even to White-oak Swamp,
driving or capturing the few rebela in the way, show-
ing what was becoming apparent at Washington, by
this time, that Qenerai Lee was turning his attention
in another direction. He knew the character of the
Federal commander on the James River, and was not
afraid to leave Richmond, his " base of supplies," to
go on an expedition toward the north. He believed
tiiat if his movement upon Washington did not re-
move McClelian entirely from the Peninsula, it
would at least not draw him from his inactivity on
the James.
In the meantime it had been decided at Washing
ton that McClellan's army should be withdrawn from
the Peninsula, without consulting him about its pro-
priety. But this was no less difficult a matter tiian
others had been in dealing with Qenerai McCIeUan.
When he got the first intimation of this purpose, he
began to urge upon the President his original idea of
bi'eaking the Rebellion in the way he had taken. He
still held that he should be re-enforced, at the
ovGoO'^lc
fw^> ■
IBBAHAH LmCOLH. S67
expense of nil other parte of the coaotiy, and the great
Btniggle made where he was. His way to Richmond,
he maiatained yet, waa the true way to save Wash-
ington and the Union. Toward the end of July
General Halleck ordered him to remove all his eick ;
but he was in no hurry even about this, and when, at
last, he -was notified that this was preparatory to the
withdrawal of his entire force, he seat up a long, for-
mal remonstrance. Nor did he stop with this. On
the 3d of August the order to evacuate was ^ven,
and three days afterward this letter followed from
Halleck :—
" HiAD-an^BTBu or thb Asht, WABHiMOTOit, 1
" August 6, X862. ;
"General, — Your telegram of yesterday was received
this momiog, and I immediately telegraphed a brief reply,
promising to write you more fully by mail.
"Yon, General, certainly vonld not have been more
pained at receiving my order than I was at the necessity
of iBsaing it, I wan advised by high officers, in whose
judgment I had great confidence, to make the order im-
mediately on my arrival here, but I determined not to do
so until I could learn your wishes from a personal inter-
view. And even after that interview I tried every meana
in my power to avoid withdrawing your army, and delayed
my decision as long as I dared to delay it.
" I assure you, Gieneral, it was not a hasty and incon-
nderate act, but one that caused me more anxious thoughts
than any other of my life. But after full and mature con-
nderation of all the proa and cona, I was reluctantly forced
to the conclusion that the order must be issued ; there was
to my mind no alternative.
" Allow me to allude to a few of the facts in the case.
" You and your officers at our interview estimated the
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368 UFE AND TIMES OF
eocmy's foroea in and around Rlcbmond at two bandred
thousand meD. Since tben you and others report that
they have received and are receiving large re-enforce-
ments from the South. General Pope's army, covering
Washington, is only about forty thousand. Your effective
force is only about ninety thousand. You are thirty miles
from Richmond, and General Pope eighty or niuety, with
the enemy directly betvKen you, ready to fall vith his mperior
nuvAers upon one or the other as he may deet ; neither oan
re-enforce the other in com of mich an aiiack,
" If General Pope's army be diminished to re-enforce
you, Washington, Maryland, and Penosylvania, would be
left uncovered and exposed. If your force be reduced to
strengthen Pope, you would be too weak to even hold the
position you now occupy should the enemy turn round
and attack you in full force. In other words, the old
Army of the Potomac is split into two parts, with the en-
tire force of the enemy directly between them. They can
not be united by land without exposing both to destruc-
tion, and yet they must h% united. To send Pope's
forces by water to the Peninsula, is under present cir-
cumstances a military impossibility. The only alternative
is to send the forces on the Peninsula to some point by
water, say Fredericksburg^ where the two armies can
be united.
" Let me now allude to some of the oiijections which
you have urged : You say that the withdrawal from the
present position will cause tbe certain demoralization of
the army, * which is now in excellent discipline and
condition.'
" I can not understand why a simple change of position
to a new and by no means distant base will demoralize an
army in excellent discipline, unless the officers themselves
assist in that demoralization, which I am satisfied tbey
will not.
"Your change of front, from your extreme right at
ov Google
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ABRAHAM UNOOLN. ' 371
sidered the matter, altbough I may have arrived at very
different cooclasions from your own.
" Very respectfully, your obei3ient servant,
" W. H. Halleck, Geoeral-in-Chief.
" Hajor-General G. B. HcClkllan, Commanding, etc, Berkeley, Va."
Still MoClellan delayed, hoping that he might
bring about a countermanding of the order. This
catting letter did Dot move him. Od the 9th, Gen-
eral Halleck telegraphed that he muet send tfr-
enforcements to Pope, and notified him that his con-
duct was not satisfactory. Then Halleck accused
him of wiUfal and determined disobedienoe, and told
him that he would have to explain. And after all
of this be resisted, not leaviug Fortress Monroe nntil
the 23d of August.
At last, however, the fatal "Peninsular Campaign"
had ended. Little substantial had been gained, and
much had been lost. Mr. Lincoln's way to Bich-
mond and the main strength of the rebel war power
was the right way, but he had permitted himself to
give up' to this " Peninsular " scheme of McClellan's,
and was to some extent responsible for it. It was a
great error, and no error was ever more poorly ex-
ecuted. Before Yorktown McClellan, who had long
ago on the Potomac received the name of " The
Great Unready," tarried until Johnston came, and
the small rebel force wholly unable to cope with
him began to gather between him and Richmond.
At the Chickahominy he waited again until Davis
had gathered his new conscripts, and Lee had an
army before him which he imagined large enough to
ov Google
■ US
m at a sii
ichmond s
in the ca
the " sev)
what he ]
fighting 1
ign had [
maX calam
' Cteneral
tther cooli
latience of
Eind peoph
less oami
jUan's mi!
stretch <
finally ]
few won
le wisdom
-om the p(
without ti
1 aspects.
General
n could be
ty as fix)
;upied on
near Rioh
jbelllon.
niosula, tl
cCIellan fl
the force
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ABBAHAM LINi
ssid, if the great battles had to
as well certainly to avoid the '
pense of transferring the army
tide-water region of Virginia,
by Manassas, as it had begun
materials were collected, and i
no division of its strength for
Capital. Thus far Mr. Linooli
eral, bat after he had placed M
aula, the recall of his army to
donbtfut propriety, no matter
should be. With an able and
the Army of the Potomac the
ing, without re-enforcements, c<
days of Joly, have taken Rich
stroyed every reliable source ol
army. With this force of nin
its rear and fifty thousand in
have been no donbt about th
Lee's army, by the 1st of Sept
The army on the Peninsula
general. If it had had a dari
Malvern Hill, the destrnction
Virginia and the capture of I
been reasonably certain. And
gruder said that if such an atta
had been made on the rebel fo
ahominy on the 26th of June,
hinder it taking Richmond a
works there, upon the rear of a
than itself. From several othe
ov Google
jvGooi^lc
ABRAHAU LINCOLN.
CHAPTER XVI.
1861— WAR OF THE REBELLION— GENERAL POPE-CEDAR
MOUNTAIN— GAINESVILLE-SECOND BULL RUN— CHAN-
TILL V—McCLELLAN'S HAND— THREE HUNDRED THOU-
SAND HOREI— LfiE IN MARYLAND— HARPER'S FERRV-
SOUTH MOUNTAIN— ANTIETAM— LINCOLN AND Mc-
CLELLAN— " SEEKS QUIET AND REPOSE " AT LAST.
LATE in Jtme, 1862, Oeneral John Pope was
brought from the Mississippi Valley, where he
had characterized himself as a darii^ and able officer,
and placed in command of the force in the field in
front of Washington. This force consisted mainly
of the three armies under Irwin McDowell, N. P.
Banks, and Franz Sigel, the latter having taken the
position recently resigned by General Fremont.
From the outset Pope exhibited a degree of activity
which was unusual on the Potomac, and in this
spirit he never flagged throughout hU brief and
tragic career in Virginia ; although it is, perhaps,
true that on assuming the command there was an air
of bluster and brag about his proceedings hardly
becoming a soldier or a man of discretion. At all
events, a general order or address issued by him
after assuming the command, on the 14th of July,
was quite offensive to some of the Eastern Oenerals,
and especially to George B. McClellan, who had yet
ov Google
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J, Google
LIFB AND TIUSS OF
t a force sufficient to intercept him
bay until he could fall upon JackBon
I by main force, his order was not
OQ the 29th he assailed Jackson at
desperate battle which closed with
which he saw the utter hopelessness
the aid from the Army of the Poto-
1 he had based all his operations, or
lupplies and assistance as he should
rem Washington. On the following
as renewed. In the meantime Lnng-
met no impediment, had come up.
tie fonght on this day was called
,an or Manassas. That night the
the Union fell back in good order
;ton.
it Jackson to fall on Pope's right
was aware of the design and pro-
best he conld. On the first of Sep-
evening, the opposing armies met
lly, in the rear and to the right of
this struggle the rebels were checked,
rere very heavy on the Union side,
re men who fell here were General
nd General Isaac J. Stevens. Pope
) the fortifications above Alexandria,
^ed his command
bnttles, McClellan had arrived at
1 strangely enough was placed in
bole bnsinesB of forwarding supplies
ipe, his head-quarters being at Alex-
ovGoO'^lc
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b.Gooi^lc
ABRAHAM IJNCOLK. 381
That Genend Pope committed no mistakeB, it
would not be easy to prove, perhaps; but his rapid
movements, zbhI, great energy, bravery, and determi-
nation deserved a better fate ia Virginia, and that
they would have had a different result can hardly be
doubted, had King, Porter, and Franklin, and espe-
cially McClellan, done what it was' their simple duty
as patriots and men to do, and which he had every
reason to believe they would do.
With the end of this unfortunate campaign the
Rebellion rose to its highest state of prosperity and
hope. Its outlook was flattering. From the poorly
fed and tattered army the illusion spread over the
whole South. The "God of Hosts" was leading the
right! Vain dream! Like the smoke of the battle,
the delusion passed away. The defeat of Pope's
army brought no adequate return; and the whole
Northern raid was without political results. It in-
spired the North to do more of what it was so able
to do. It gave a new impetus to the martial spirit
of the Union. Late in June the governors of seven-
teen States jointly asked the President to call for
more troops to crush the Rebellion, signifying their
anxiety to co-operate and the ambition of a prosper-
ous and patriotic people to engage in the work in
which they all had an equal interest. In accordance
with this appeal, on the first day of July Mr. Lin-
coln called for three hundred lliousaad more troops,
and soon after a diaft was ordered to supply any
deficiencies in the quotas of the States. In this
joint action of the governors, Tennessee was repre-
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384 LIFE AND TIMES OF
appeal. They were willing to give their sympathy
without bearing the burdens of a desperate cause
which demanded the property and persons of its
supporters. Lee was sadly disappointed. He ex-
pected the State which had givei) to the RebelHon
the song which most aptly expressed the deep feel-
ing and hatred of the day, would send into his ranks
on such an opportunity a great host of those who
had been stripped of all their precious rights by a
wicked Oovernment which would not deal with its
open and secret enemies on strictly Constitutional
principles. On this raid into Maryland Lee's army
did not, perhaps, receive three hundred recruits, with
all the eflforts put forth to that end. The whole ■
South was mortified and disappointed. Still the raid
was not without some benefits to the rebels. Fail-
ing, as he soon saw he was destined to do, in in-
creasing the size of his army, Lee turned his atten-
tion, as Bragg had dooe in Kentucky, to its commia*
gary wants. Not only did he supply its immediate
necessities, but thousands of cattle were driven
- across the Potomac, and everything of present or
future benefit to his needy troops was appropriated
without ceremony.
On the 7th of September General McClellan left
Washington, the advance of his army having started
in pursuit of Lee three days previously. He neces-
sarily moved slowly and with caation, not knowing
the whereabouts or purposes of the enemy, until he
reached Frederick, on the 12th. Here McGlellan
was fortunate enough to come into possession of a
ovGoO'^lc
ABRAHAM tlNOOlN. 386
copy of Lee's order dated only three days before,
revealing his designs and the disposition of his forces.
ThiB fact Lee never discovered; but that the posses-
sion of this exact and valuable informatioa greatly
benefited the Union anuy does not so clearly appear.
In speaking of McClellan's good luck in finding this
inarching order, W. H. Taylor in his " Four Years
with General Lee," says : —
" But what an advantage did thin fortuitous event give
the Federal commander, whose heretofore snail-like move-
mente wei'e wonderfully accelerated whem he was made
aware of the &ct of the division of our army, and of the
small portion thereof which confronted him. The Gk>d of
Battles alone knows what would have ooourred but
for the singular socident mentioned ; it is useless to spec-
ulate on this point, but certainly the loss of this Irattle-
order constitutes one of the pivots on which turned the
event of the war."
In this order Lee had divided his army, sending
Stonewall Jackson to cross the Potomac, destroy the
Bnltimore and Ohio Railroad and then fall upon
Harper's Ferry, which was the nuun object of the
entire detachment. The divisions of McLawg, An-
derson, and Walker were also sent against Harper's
Ferry with especial instructions as to the course to
pursue. The whole army was to be reunited at
Hagerstown.
Although McClellan's army now had in it a great
deal of raw material, new recruits, it was greatly
superior in numbers to that of the rebel General, and
it was certainly in his power to relieve Harper's
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386 UFE A»
Ferry, and destroy the
Laws and R. H. Anders
have prevented. Hon
Bented was not taken,
reason for not doing so,
and it is not now necesi
his conduct. Instead of
of his army through Cnii
fun, sinking the Potom
proceeded with commen
of Lee towards- Hagerat
General W. B. Franklin,
ton's G-np, found in his
vision, but it was not in
Harper's Ferry. On th<
overtook Lee at Turner
The rebel General had e
movement, and now seei
land must be brief, was
tion to delay his purauei
per's Ferry should be
united. But a battle w
in the Gap was a strong
the conflict he saw that
to his divided army. ^
dawned and the national
its work, the enemy had
At Crampton's Gap,
the 14th, Franklin had (
and on that day he hei
per's Ferry, which sum
ovGoO'^lc
ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 387
tiie 15th. This place was UDforlunately under the
command of Colonel D. 8. Miles, who had somehow
been restored after his disgrace at the first Ball
Run. He had with him about fourleen thousand
men, mostly new recruits, who had never seen service,
two thousand of them being cavalry. These latter
got permission, and escaped, and the rest, about
twelve thousand, were surrendered, Miles himself re-
ceiving a mortal wound i£fter he had put oat his
white flag.
McGIellan now spent two days in hunting Lee
and getting ready for battle. This was precious
time. Before noon on the 16th he knew that
Harper's Ferry had fallen into the hands -of the
rebels, and well he knew that Stonewall Jackson
would not tarry long there to look after the spoils or
celebrate the event. Lee had taken a position on the
west side of Antietam Creek, several miles from the
Potomac, and near the village of Sharpsburg; and
during the 16th and 16th his army was stilt divided,
not over one-half of it being with him. All of this
McGIellan knew. On the afternoon of the 16th, and
the following morning, it must have been in his
power to accomplish what the finding of Lee's gen-
eral order at Frederick furnished him the rare op-
portunity of doing; at least, he could have com-
pensated largely for bis failure to move the greater
part of his army through the gaps farther south,
fii-st intercepting and defeating McLaws, and then
falling between Lee and the Potomac. There would
have been no escape for the greater part of the rebel
ov Google
anny. McClellan's want of
ia too apparent to need
reasonable grounds his coui
erick must remain ioexplicn
At the break of day on
General Hooker began the b
attacking the rebel extreme
had skillfully and laboriousl
fore. This remained the si
out the day, McCiellan r
tactics of sendiag in one of hi
then relieving it by anot
fate. Lee knew McCIellHn
had dallied along, sqnanderi
uDsoldierly error of dividing
a foe bad been corrected, h(
eral General's repeating I
course of fighting with a si
was allowed to mass his mai
right through the greater pi
well at bay, until darkness
army very much outoumberi
troops slept on their arms in
when the day closed, believ
in the morning to renew
war. There was no escape
the morning came, and the '
the commanding General wi
rebels were in no condition 1
watch their superior antagc
great dilatoriness would ei
ovGoO'^lc
ABRAHAM LINC
their plans of escape. Old
said, had been clamorous for
McCtellan, now remembered thi
and tardiness of the Peninsula
cheeks burn with shame and ii
ing the expejience of Malvern I
weary night passed, and the ;
broke with the amazing new
whole rebel army had been alk
the Potomac.
On the 20th McClellan sei
Lee, but this was a mistake, i
defeat. Lee, well aware of
moved leisurely out toward
took occasion to send J. E. B.
airy to Chambersbut^, Pennsyl
a circuit around McClellan as
Peninsula. McClellan made e
to catch Stuart, but they amou:
preparations always prevented
time. In these battles there
killed, wounded, and missing o
sand on each side. The rebel:
Antietam a drawn battle j Mc(
a single gun or color was lost I
battles ;" but about all they i
thing to the solution of the qi
yet required to exhaust the resoi
It was now demonstrated bey
■ rebels were unable to carry th(
the blockade was complete ; an
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LIFE AUD TIUE8 OF
tion had died nith tiie test of Ericssou's
and the settlemeDt of the SVent case,
lellan now fell into his usual torpor; and
I the oouQtry was gratified with the expiii-
the rebel army from Maryland, it was by no
fttisfied. Enough had not been done nnder
irastaDces. The President had submitted to
>ration of McCtellan, but he was not satisfied,
it Uie 1st of Ootober he made ft visit to the
The result was that in less than a week
ds Halleck sent McOlellan these peremptory
" The President directs that you cross the
■■ and give battle to the enemy, or drive him
Your army must move now, while the roads
McClellan did not obey the order, and now
;wed the wonderful correspondence betweea
Halleck and the President. His remarkable
for inventing impossibilities, exa^erating
as, overestimating his own achievements,
restimating the forces opposed to him, was
splayed to its highest perfection. He had
[ in representing the rebel army as more
s than his own at Antietam, when it was
twenty or thirty thousand, at least. And
j&a not twice as small was owing to his inex-
delays, when he knew as well as the rebel
himself what was the exact condition of his
He now began to call for ro'enforcements,
plain, and in one way or another the Presi-
der to move was set aside.
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I^\
ABRAJEUU UNCOLN. 391
On the 7tli of October, only one day after he had
been ordered to cross the Potomac, from his camp
near SharpBborg he considered it his duty to issue a
general order to the army, which he had for some
time been in the habit of calling " my army," touch-
ing the President's Emancipation ProolamatiOD. This
order was certainly founded on the sapposition of his
superior power and influence over the Army of the
Potomac. And while it wiis in the main expressed
in unobjectionable terms, the propriety of its appear-
ance is extremely doubtful. The mere thought that
the Army of the Potomac could be more devoted to
its commander than to the authority of the Govern-
ment, at such a crisis especially, would deserve to
bring its memory into everlasting shame. The order
was not flattering to either thC' intelligence or patriot-
ism of that army. Yet it is hard to believe that
General McClellan did not issue this order under the
pare conviction that he would serve the country best
by doing so. - Few, perhaps, at this day, do believe
it. And yet, this apparently good find harmless order
contains this suggestive and ambiguous sentiment:
" The remedy for political errors, if any are com-
mitted, is to be found only in the action of the
people at the polls."
It is hardly to be doubted that this expression
conveyed an idea to the army in harmony with the
already well-known opposition of McClellan to what
was termed the Republican plan of conducting the
war. McClellan was, perhaps, a "War Democrat,"
but his methods involved less than those of many
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)BI>BBe NO. 181.
eeideDt of the United States, it
— i,_. ral McClellan be relieved from
the command of the Army of the Potomac, and that
Kajor-General Burnside take command of that army.
" By order of the Secretary of War.
"E. D. TowNSBND, Adjatant-General."
This was one of the few important orders to
General McClellan which he did oot disobey or stop
to argue or quibble over, or seek to delay. Still his
method of obeying was peculiar to himself, and was
hardly in keeping with the character of a temporary
" citizen " army, or that of a plain republican Gen-
eral. At all events, it served to throw him into a
more promioent attitude of opposition, sharpen the
edge of partisan zeal, and prepare the way for the
repetition of the skulking and disobedience which
disgraced the series of operations under Pope, on the
part of officers and men who were willing to pat a
personal fancy, or even a genuine grievance, above
more manly qnalities, or the all-absorbing duty of
the hour, undivided devotion to the work of conquer-
ing the Rebellion.
McClellan at once issued a brief address to the
army under him, closing : " We shiill ever be com-
rades in supporting the Constitution of our country.
and the nationality of its people." The wisdom and
goodness of this whole address were questionable.
The General now spent three days in getting ready
to leave, passing the last day in showing himself in
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4 UFE ASD TIMES OF
e melodramatic oapacitj of bidding farewell to
ose to whom he said he bore an inexpressible
love and gratitude."
Id his speech at the head>qnarters of Fitz John
►rter he said : " History will do jnetice to the
eds of the Army of the Potomac, if the present
Deration does not."
Ah t no. The kind of justice meant in moments
that sort is the work of the political biographer, or
B hero-worshiper. It falls beneath the field of
story. The historian would certainly have little
Sculty in distinguishing between the army and its
mmanders.
On his way to Trenton^ Qeneral McClellan pitssed
rough WashingtoQ without stopping. He knew
lat had happened, and why, and it was unnecessary
see the President or General Halleck to find out.
1; Trenton he said he had come among the people
o seek quiet and repose." How could any earnest,
ergetic-Bouled patriot seek quiet and repose at such
time ? These things were, indeed, not then to be
ind in America by either the good or f^e evil,
was said then and at a later period that no reasons
>re given either to General McClellan or the eoun-
r for his unceremonious dismissal.- No more ap-
rent hypocrisy was ever talked and written than
is charge against the Administration. The men-
in of it to-day would be an insult to intelligent
ople. It was Lincoln's boundless charity which
thbeld the reasons. The least said the better it
ls for this thoroughly and patiently tried, but
ovGoO'^lc
ABR^AU LmOOLir. 395
incompetent soldier. The oarefol reader of these pnges
need . not be told why General McClellaD was thos
relieved of hia command, and took no farther active
part in the war. His " services ** can not be re-
viewed here. He had furnished him the most mag-
nificently equipped and powerful army ever gathered
on the continent, and with it could have moved di-
rectly from Washington to Hichniond, or by way of
the Peninsula even, if he had chosen to do so, instead
trf lying quietly for many weary months on the Po-
tomac. It matters not now to speculate on the rea-
sons which held him back or prevented him giving
the decisive blow he was profuse in promising. With-
out wrong motives, and with some most admirable
qualifications, he yet seemed to be so constitnted as
to render him totally unfit for the times and Ihe-
work pat before him. He was a slow, but good or-
ganizer, without traits enabling him to lead a large
army in the field, and especially against an earnest
and able domestic enemy ; and was, perhaps, as des-
titute of the true elements of greatness in the man
or the soldier as any American who has acquired
distinction as the leader of a party or the general of
an army. His appointment was the greatest calam-
ity which befell the canse of the Union, and which
so greatly deepened, if it did not mainly produce,
the dark days, of the first years of the war.
Dr. Holland, in his " Life of Lincoln," says, in
great charity : —
"That General McClellan loved (liked) power, is evi-
dent; and it is just as evident that it was not pleasant to
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ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 397
and which were too often not justified by the facts.
That the general of an army had the least right to
conceal bis designs and moTements from the Presi-
dent, is too utterly foolish to deserve ridicule. That
Mr. Lincoln was always a good judge of the character
of a military project may well be doubted. Where is
the soldier or civilian whose judgment has always
been above criticism? Where Mr. Lincoln's confi-
dence was fixed he seldom or nevet obtruded his
opinion, never out of place ; although many of his
letters to McClellan on the Peninsula had in them an
air of taunting, which must have been vexatious, and
were, it seems, at this distance, entirely uncalled for
and reprehensible. That Mr. Lincoln was always
right as to his methods and views can not be main-
tained; and the same may be true as to his dealings
with McClellan. Aa to General Halleck it may
hardly be necessary to speak. His magisterial habits
were notable; some of his theories and orders were
inexplicable; and it conld hardly^ be claimed that
while he had many causes of complaint against Mc-
Clellan, the latter had none against him.
The following little letter will show Mr. Lincoln's
general method of dealing : —
" Washinqton, AdgoBt 29, 1S62, 410 P. U.
"Yours of to-daj' just received. I think your first
alternative, to wit: 'to coocentrate all our available forces
to open oommunication with Pope,' is the right one, but
I wish not to control. That I now leave to General Hal-
leck, aided by your counsels. A. Lincolk.
" UsJoi^Oeneral McClbllah."
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ABRAHAM IJNCX)LK. 399
any more than the Secretary of War for him, and ibofh of
them together no more than I wish it. Sometimes we
have a dispute about how many men General McClellan
has had, aod those who would disparage him say that he
has had a very large number, and those who would dis-
parage the Secretary of War insist that General McClellan
has had a very small number. The basis for this is, there
is always a wide difference, and on this occasion, perhaps, a
wid«r one than nsnal, between the gr^nd total ob McClel-
lan's rolls and the men aotaally fit for duty ; and those who
would disparage him talk of the grand total ou paper, and
those who would disparage the Secretary of War talk of
those at present fit for duty. General McClellan has some*
times asked for things that the Secretary of War did not
give him. General McClellau is not to blame for asking
for what he wanted and needed, and the Secretary of War
is not to blame for not {pving when he had none to give.
And I say here, as far as I know, the Secretary of War
has withheld no one thing at any time in my power to give
him. I have no accusation against him, I believe he is a
brave and able man, and I stand here, as justice requires
me to do, to take upon myself what has been charged on
the Secretary of War, as withholding from him.
" I have talked longer than I expected to do, and now
I avail myself of my privilege of saying no more."
The story of General McClellan, the troubles of
the Administration in dealing with him, and the
effect in the progress of events, constitute one of
the most remarkable chapters of American history.
Thus belieTing, I have given the subject that promi-
nence it appeared to deserve, risking aa much as
possible under the restraints of brevity. Without
the remotest care or preference as to General Mc-
Clellan's politics, and but the most necessary and
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ABBAHA.li LINCOLN.
CHAPTER XVII.
i86j— WAR OF THE REBELLION— GENERAL BURNSIDE—
FREDERICKSBURG— GENERAL HOOKER TRIED— CHAN-
CELLORSVILLE— STONEWALL JACKSON— WHERE NOW
STOOD THE "GOD OF BATTLES 7"— GENERAL MEADE
AT THE HEAD OF THE ARMY OF THE POTOMAC-
GETTYSBURG— LEE OUTGENERALED,
ON the 8th of November, 1862, without alacrity
or conSdence, General Burnside nssumed com-
mand of the Anny of the Potomac. The outlook
was diBCOuraging enough. The mode of McClellan's
departure had , placed the army on the verge of
poIiticHt organization, and none but a bold and fool-
hardy man could have undertaken to lead it, in full
view ef Pope's experience, without fear of calamitous
consequences. But Burnside was a man of action,
nnd was able to place obedience to orc^rs, and duty,
above personal considerations or consequences. He
selected Fredeiicksbarg as the best point for opera-
tions in the direct route to Hichmond, and at once
set about moving the army down the Rappahannock.
Under all the discouragements of the situation be
went to work in an energetic and manly way ; in the
first place organizing hia entire force of over a hun-
dred thousand men into three grand divisions under
Hooker, Franklin, and Sumner. The selection of
these leaders with the exception of the last w^,
ov Google
402
perhaps, his firsi
have beea difScu
error in that gret
contented a ad r
aware of the des
once moved his ^
when Sumner's
Fredericksburg, c
there in force e
had hoped to ret
self on the heigb
him, before Lee <
did reach the rive
and for a day or
layed on this ace
leek was engaged
burg by the tim<
ase them, and Hi
tending to that n
serious mischance
The two hostile t
one lying on the
on the correspont
Rappahannock.
Fredericksburg &i
pahannock in th
through an eleval
It is now eas]
had taken positii
which hundreds (
ment to sweep
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""^
404 LIFE AND TIMES OF
in accordance with his feelings, seTeral times re-
fusing or neglecting to obey the commands of the
responsible General. And on the left, where the
main battle was to be, Franklin failed entirely to
attack in force or to make any determined effort to
do the work assigned to him. General Meade sao
ceeded, however, in gaining a favorable position on
the rebel right, with five thousand men, accordii^ to
Bumside's plan of battle, but for want of snppoit
was finally beaten back with great loss. As difficult
and unwise, perhaps, as was this fruitless battle, it
does not appear that Franklin could not have carried
out Burnside's plan to the letter; and bad he done
BO, the rebels would have been forced to abandon
their entire position on the ridges. Fredericksburg
may he set down as one of those unfortunate events
in the history of the Army of the Potomac largely
due to General McCletlan's peculiar discipline. The
propriety of going into battle at all without the
hearty approval of the officers on whom success
mainly depends may be regarded as doubtful, but
the want of perfect acquiescence in the plans of a
general never can furnish an apology for failure on
the part of his subordinates to use the atmost energy
and skill to insure success.
On the 14th, General Bumside would have re-
newed the contest, but meeting the unanimous op-
position of his officers, this unwise intention was
abandoned. His opportunity was, indeed, gone, ul-
though his available force was yet equal to or greater
than Uiat of Lee. On the night of the 15th the
ovGoo'^lc
ABRAHAM UMCOLN. 406
Udiod army was withdrawn wUbout loss in men or
property to its former position on the north side
of the riTer. W. H. Taylor, a rebel writer, says that
while "this was the most easily won of nil the great
battles of the war, the allotted task of the Federal
soldiers exceeded human endeavor j and no shame to
them that, after such courageous conduct, their efforts
lacked success."
Burnside soon after these events began to prepare
for making another strike at the rebels; but through
the treachery of some of his own ofBcers his plans
became generally known, and so this was abandoned.
Ill a visit to Washington made at this time be foand
that some of his officers were discouraging his plans
and making serious exciting misrepresentations in
letters to the President. About the middle of Janu-
ary he planned another movemenf whioh the char-
acter of the weather prevented his putting into
execution. This was the end of his operations with
the Army of tlie Potomac. He drew up a general
order concerning the evil counsels and machinations
in his army, dismissing from the service two brign-
diers, John Newton and W. T. H. Brooks, and Gen-
eral Hooker, and relieving from further connection
with that army W. B. Franklin, W. F. Smith, John
Cochrane, and Edward Ferrero, and J. H. Taylor,
the latter being a lieutenant-colonel, and the others
ranking as major or brigadier generals. Before issuing
this order he submitted it to the President, who
taking a somewhat different view of the case, and
concluding that General Burnside had, perhaps,
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JBAHAM LINCOLN. 407
j;wick with his corps to make a
mhannock below the town, while
his army should pasa up the river
' rebels, and crossing that stream
should clear the rebel outposts,
^^^^ v»^^».wv<>v..'as with his supplies by the lower
fords, and by way of ChancellorsviUe fall upon Lee's
left and rear in position where Burnside had left him.
By the night of tbe'SOth of April, he had with com-
meodable skill succeeded in his preparatory move-
ments, locating his head-quarters at the solitary house
called ChancellorsviUe. Up to this time he had carried
out his designs to the letter and had outgeneraled
Lee, if there could be any virtue in saying such a
thing in view of what followed. He had a large cav-
alry force of ten or twelve thousand men under the
general command of George D. Stoneman. With this
he hoped to cut Lee's communications with Rich-
mond, and otherwise greatly advance hui own plans
for the utter ruin of the enemy. It may as well bei
said here that Stoneman's magnificent opportunity
was turned to poor account. A part of his force did,
indeed, enter the rebel fortifications near Richmond ;
and he gathered some booty )ind a few prisoners, but
this fine cavalry corps, more than three-times ns great
as the rebel cavalry, did in the long run little good
for their own cause, and little injury to that of the
foe. The only favorable thing which can or need be
said of Stoneman's part of Hooker's utter failure, is
that it was no worse managed and less beneficial to
the country than Hooker's own operations.
ovGoO'^lc
408 LIFE AND TIUES OF
By the afternoon of May 1st Hooker, with seventy-
five thousand men, had reached the open country be-
yond the dense, broken wood, called the Wilderoess,
and aeemed to be in a fair way to the realization of
his highest hopes. Bat just here his disaster begaa.
He suddenly took the unmilitary notion that the
Wilderness was a bad thing to have in hia rear, and
amidst the protests of Hancock and several other
officers, ordered the army hack* to Chancellorsville,
where he issued a bombastic order or address, mude '
of congratulutions for the successful achievements of
the three preceding days, and boasts as to the destiny
awaiting Lee at his hands. Instead of carrying out
his original and correct plan of moving on to find and
whip the rebels, he now strangely assumed the defen-
sive, and in a poorly selected position at Ghaocellors-
TiUe, awaited to be attacked. He did not have long
to wait; for Lee and Jackson, numericaUy much
weaker, taking advantage of the Wilderness, which
he so much feared, were preparing to strike him both
in front and rear. Leaving ten thousand of his men
under Early in the position at Fredericksburg, Lee
had set out to meet the Federal army. Contrary to.
military principles, and sound sense under ordinary
circumstances,- Lee divided his force, sending twenty-
five thousand men under Stonewall Jackson to
gain the rear of Hooker's position. Heartily con-
curring, and concealed by the "Wilderness" in his
movement, Jackson succeeded in making his point,
and late in the evening, Saturday, May 2d, surprised
and utterly routed Howard's whole corps. But the
ovGoO'^lc
ABRAHAM LIHCOUT.
nature of the ground and tangled woo
extraordinary success somewhat dem
confused the rebels, iiud night coming (
attacked and repulsed by Sickles aa(
meeting just after night the greatest mis
had yet befiillen them on the field, in
Stonewall Jackson. Returning with 1
viewing the ground before him, in the <
darkness, he was fired upon by some o
men, and fell from his horse mortally i
the assavlt made by the Union troops at
he was ridden over, but wiis subsequent
carried from the field. On the 10th
biave and able soldier died.
That night Hooker made such disp
forces as he thought best, and awaited
on Sunday morning. By noon he had d
from his position at Chancellorsville
nearer the river, and was the victor, nol
his loss of Jackson and his unequal foi
time Sedgwick, whose activity had not i
expectations, had crossed the Rappaha
Fredericksbui^ and driving Early befor
the works where Bumside met defeat
brought the greater part of Gibbon's <
the camp at Falmouth, was now push
over twenty-five thousand men to strik
Ascertaining this state of affairs, Lee a
ted the unsoldierly act of dividing his
a port of it gainst Sedgwick. But it
daring, wide-awake commander, with t
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412 UFE AND TIMES OF
were despondent and uncertain. If the rebels could
now strike a stunning blow on Northern soil, the nd-
vantage would probably be of inestimable valae, if
not decisire to their cause. It was the auspicious
moment for another Northern sortie. And so all
other considerations gave way before this, and by
the 3d of June, Lee's advance was on its way by
the Shennndoah Valley to Pennsylvania.
Od the 14th he reached Winchester, where Gen-
eral R. H. Milroy with seven thousand troops was
posted. On the following day he captured about
half of Mil^oy's little army, and most of his stores
and guns. By the 26th of June, Lee had crossed
the Potomac at Shepardstown and Williamsport;, a
part of his cavalry having been at Chamhersburg,
Pennsylvania, ten days previously.
A. P. Hilt's corps had remained for a time at
Fredericksburg to watch the movements of Hooker,
but had now joined the main force going to the
North. The rebels had put forth all their conscrip-
tion and 'other resources for this expedition, and the
result was the largest and best equipped army they
were ever able to send out, numbering in infantry,
cavalry, and artillery nearly one hundred thousand
men. After Hooker was fully aware of Lee's depar-
ture, he desired to cross the Rappahannock and whip
Hill, as he readily could have done without much
delay in pursuing Lee, but this wise plan HiiUeck
did not approve. On the 26th of June Hooker
crossed the Potomac at Edwards's Ferry, and moved
on to Frederick, where he resigned the command of.
:b,GOO'^IC
\Mi^
ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 413
the armj to General George G. Meade, and by order
of Halleck was directed to proceed to Baltimore and
await further iaetractions. In a little address or
order to the army he said that he wae impressed
vith the belief that hisnisefulness with it had ended.
A few days subsequently he was arrested in Wash-
ington by General Halleck for leaving Baltimore
without permission. Halleck had opposed his ap-
pointment to the command of the Army of the Poto-
mac, and his strange conduot and utter failure at
Chancellorsville had further convinced the General-in-
Chief that Hooker was wholly unfit for such a trust.
And in this he was correct, his judgment being that
of hia countrymen and of history. Hooker's foolish
and unpatriotic political aspirations, or supposed as-
pirations in that way, were also an additional source
of offense to Halleck ; while Hooker, on his part,
charged to Halleck most of his troubles, if not his
failure. If Halleck had been in the employ of JeflF
Davis, Hooker said he could not have embarrassed
him more than he did from the beginning to the end
of his command of the army.
About the time that Hooker took this position he
was supposed to be under the influence of the Presi-
dential disease, and was accused of thinking that he
possessed qualities especially fitting him to be a tem-
porary military dictator. Concerned only about the
national success and honor, Mr. Lincoln wrote to him
directly about this matter, telling him that he needed
to give himself no concern about hia political future,
that if he conducted himself so as to defeat Lee and
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jvGooi^lc
ABRAHAM UNCOLN.
the best evidence there was that he h
way connected with the disgraceful eaba
snpposiiig that the order for him to tn
of the army was an order for his arresi
dangerous experiment to change commar
a moment, but perhaps no evil came of
Meade issued a modest order, and ;
once about the work in hand. French
imder his command at discretion, nlso
thousiind or more militia under Couch iil
both of which he left alone, although
resigned because he could not use Freni
A part of the rebel army penetrnted ]
to within thirteen miles of Hiirrisburg foi
country, and levying heavily in money
at York and Carlisle. Lee hnlted at CI
and remained (here several days, eviden
from the North. At the same time I
Stephens made application to visit Was
commissioner from Jefferson Davis, bul
being notified that "the customary ager
nels are adequate for all needed comma]
conferences between the United States fi
insurgents." The draft riots in New Toi
delphia were delayed, and Lee, anxious
mnnications, became impatient. He n<
fear that the projected uprising in th(
likely to render him little aid. For th«
cavalry, which he had unwisely sent a
poorly informed as to the movements of
the 29th he ascertained beyond a dou
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416 Un AND TIMES OF
Federals were Dot, as he seemed to expect, awaiting
events on the Poiomae, bat were then close upon
him, pressing forward for the passes of South Mount-
ain. Still, if Meade had any plan it did not appear
very clear tbat it embraced a piissage throoj^ this
mountain ridge, an extension of the Blue Badge, for
he was looking for a strong position on Pipe Creek,
fifteen miles south of Gettysburg, as if he wonld be
sought there by Lee. While this was the apparent
state of the case, by the first day of July, a part of
his cavalry and twenty thousand infantry, under
Generals John F. Reynolds and 0. 0. Howard,
reached Gettysburg.
This historic town is about ten miles east of
South Mountain, occnpying an elevated position in
the small valley of Rock Creek among some ridges
and high hiUs, fragmentary outposte of South Mount-
ain. One of these ridges, called Seminary Ridge,
stretches for several miles north and south on the
west of the town ; while another, called Cemetery
Ridge, shaped like a fish-hook, and having several
high points — Gulp's Hill, Round Top, and Little
Round Top— on it, lies to the south-east of the town.
On Cemetery Ridge is the cemetery, and on Sem-
innry Ridge is a theological school.
It had not been Lee's design to fight unless the
advantages were evidently on his side. He seemed
to have no plan, indeed. He was waiting for some-
thing to turn up. What were the miserable Northern
allies going to do ? Every moment was fatal to him ;
and he acted throughout as if the demon of destruction
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^mr^^.;
ABRAHAM LIIfCX>LH. 417
were guiding him. Hia conduct was daring, but not
that of a wise soldier. He had yet not learned that
one man was equal to one man under proper geneml-
ship. And when, at last, he heard without the use
of his cavalry that Meade was pressing on after him,
he ordered all his army to concentrate at Gettysburg^
and came down there to fight a battle, which it was
really his policy to avoid. Under the pretense of
generalship no raid or expedition of the war was so
complete a failure as this. But in another chapter a
glance will be tak^i\.at Q-enenil Lee as a soldier.
Before noon on the 1st of July the Union cavalry,
under General J. Buford, met Hill's advance on the
Cbambersburg Road, west of Gettysburg. Buford
made a stout effort to check the rebels until Rey-
nolds, who had already reached the town, should
come to his aid across Seminary Ridge. Howard's
corps was also not far in the rear, making this ad-
vance force of Meade's army about twenty thousand
strong. Reynolds attacked the rebels with v^or, but
at the very outset received a shot in the lieck which
"ended bis life." Abner Doubleday, an able.officer,
immediately succeeded to the command of the 1st corps,
and Howard now came up with his corps, taking com-
mand of the field. At first the conflict was in favor
of the Union forces, but this could not last. From
Cliambersburg, York, and Carlisle the rebels poured
down, and before the middle of the afternoon Howard
was whipped and pressed back over Seminary Ridge,
and through Gettysburg, taking a position in the cem-
etery on Cemetery Ridge, in which, strangely enough,
27— Q
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LIFE AND HHES of
lot disturbed the rest of the evening or th&t
!Tear]y hiilf of Howard's force had been lost,
mr o'clock Lee had at Gettysburg forty or
)usand men. He could have surrounded
and captured or killed his whole remaining
ore night. Longstreet was tardy, and Lee
lis whole army ; so further operations were
intil the next dny. No soldier ever made a
ring mistake. He eaid he did not know the
of the Union army on the heights before
e certainly knew with what force he had
itiog, and it was an amazing thing if one of
erous prisoners he had taken could not be
tell, that Meade with four-fifths of his army
en miles away. The absence of bis cavalry"
an apology for his not knowing that while he
)r Longstreet, Meade would not be idle.
as one o'clock before Meade knew of what
)g on at Gettysburg. But be must have
1 the rebel General meant to go out of hia '
ight him, or he would not have been search-
I "strong position," at the same time ex-
ae-fiflh of his army to be overwhelmed with-
possihility of succor. General W. S. Han-
) sent on to take command at Gettysbai^,
aking well of the position, urged Meade to
rward the whole army, and continue the
1 Cemetery Ridge. At midnight Meade ar-
id by day-break on the morning of the 2d
Jnion army, but Sedgwick's corps, had come
taken position, and a hundred cannons on
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ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 41
Cemetery Ridge were ready to begin the work o
slaughter. The relative situation of the two aimie
was very much as it had beea at Fredericksburg
the attacking force being compelled to pass the intei
mediate valley swept by hostile guns. The reht
army extended along the broken Seminary Ridg
for three or four miles, with a gap of a mile betwee
two of ita corps. Longstreet was on the extrem
right and really overlapping the Union left. Thi
mifortunate position of the Federal army rendered i
liable to be turned at any time; but the rebel 6ei
eral either thought himself too powerful to use th
advantage, or did not know that he could do 3(
He was under the impression that he only bad t
move forward and complete the task he had so aui
piciously begun the day before. He was still witl
out his cavalry, and, with some claim to the reapec
ability of his opinion, held that he could not kno'
that an army equal at least in numbers and braver
to his own was concealed behind the crest of Gemi
tery Ridge. The day, however, wore away befoi
he could see his opportunity and was ready to strik<
Sickles had been ordered vrith his corps to take
position in the fields between the two ridges on tli
Union left, with bis own right continuing the line i
Little Round Top, but in his eagerness to 6ght hti
pushed forward some distance, where Meade faile
to discover him until the middle of the aftemooi
This fatnl error it was then too late to correct, s
though Sickles began the attempt. Lee had alt
discovered this blander and at once began a furiot
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LIFE AND TIMES OF
lade prepnratory to the moTement of his as-
ig force. The struggle was desperate, but
the day closed slavery was not master. Gen-
ickles bad been wounded and in his corps the
loss was very great. Longstreet had dis-
d how easily he could commnDd Meade's posi-
rom Little Round Top, and sent Hood to oo
t, but he was unsuccessful. The brave Cteueral
. Warren bad made the same discovery, and
tere before him. Here theie was a desperate
t, and had the rebels gained this high point in
ery Ridge the day would have been theirs.
hey had pressed io this end of the XJnioD line,
aid a part of Gulp's Hill, at the other. And
I day ended in a way to lure the rebel com-
ir further on in the idea that he yet had the
tage, and would to-morrow reap all its benefits
nal effort.
Ip's Hill, the extreme right of the Union line
een weakened in the struggle for Little Roand
lut in the night the troops withdrawn were
ed to that point in the line, and at dawn on
1, after a fight of an liour or two, the rebels
Iriven from the position they had gained the
ig before. And so matters stood until after
igwick bad arrived before the battle of the 2d,
lat night Lee's cavalry had come in, also his
ifantry division. From one o'clock to three
bels kept up an incessant artillery fire, until
liought be had silenced most of the Federal
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r^nT
ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 421
gans, which had been stopped, however, to free the
atmosphere of smoke to observe better the move-
ments'of the attacking colamn to come next.
Strangely enough when this grand column of
brave men started to.ward the well-posted Union
army their own supporting cannonade was stopped,
Rnd not renewed. General Lee had made the fatal
dUcovery when it was too late that his ammunition
was nearly exhausted. The main assault was directed
against the center of the Federal position, thus giving
fall play to the Federal guns from the greater part
of the line, which Lee now found to his amazement
he had not silenced. But onward pressed his
vetem troops. Some of them actually gained the
heights, driving the Federals momentarily before
them, bat where in a hand-to-hand conflict they were
overcome. Regiment after regiment threw down its
arms and rushed forward to surrender. Others were
cut down, and, scattered and broken, the remnant
sought safety in the woods on Seminary Ridge. The
great battle of Gettysburg was ended. - The last
rebel sortie had failed. Lee and his invincible army
had confidently met an equal number of Federal
troops under an untried and unpretending officer,
and been whipped. And the hope of the Northern
"Copperheads" had been crushed forever.
Nearly three thousand of the Union troops were
killed, nearly fourteen thousand wounded, and about
six thousand missing. And about five thousand
rebels were killed, twenty thousand wounded and
Kbont ten thousand unwounded taken prisoners, and
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LIFE AND TIHE8 OF
greater part of their woaDded fell into the hands
iie Federals.
!)n the. night of the 4th Lee withdrew, and al-
igb French had destroyed the greater part of his
aon train, Meade made a weak pursuit, and
lly allowed Lee to escape across the Potomac.
the 18th of July the Union army again entered
'inia, passiog over oft-trodden grounds to the
3ric Rappahannock.
Uthough in the next foor or five months several
ire fights occnrred in this region, and the cavalry
quite active, if not always successful or wisely
lied, yet with the battle of Gettysburg the Army
lie Potomac ended its decisive work for the ye;ir
B. A part of it was sent to the West, aa was
n part of Lee's rebels, and for a time the atteu-
of the country was turned to the stirring events
hat direction. A new era in the history of the
ly of the Potomac was about to begin. Up to
time it had merely held its own agtunst the
ly of Northern Virginia, as the rebel army was
;d. There had been no brilliant generalship dis-
ed on either side, no successful strategy to
ih the , eulc^st's pen. In vain may the candid
ier and student hope to find the elements of
e and admiration in the history of the war in
pnia up to this period. The general pioture only
ties regret and sorrow.
ovGoO'^lc
ABRAHAM LUJCOLN.
CHAFTTER XVIII.
1863— WAR OF THE REBELLION— THE WES'l— VICKSBURG—
PORT HUDSON— THE MISSISSIPPI OPENED— CHICK A-
MAUOA— CHATTANOOGA— LOOKOUT MOUNTAIN— BAT-
TLE ABOVE THE CLOUDS— BURN SIDE AT KNOXVILLE—
MINOR EVENTS— NEGRO SOLDIERS— FORT PILLOW—
GILLMORE AT FORT SUMTER — MISSOURI —THE IN-
DIANS—THE NAVY— ENGLAND HUMILIATED— PROUD
MISTRESS OF THE SEA ?
AT the beginDing of this year Roaecraas, with
the Army of the Cumberland, was at Murfrees-
boro, facing towards Chattanooga; and the Army of
the Teanessee, as Grant's command was at this time
called, WHS on the Mississippi, with Vicksburg as its
objective point. Although diverted from his original
plan for the capture of Vickaburg and the complete
overthrow of the rebel power on the Mississippi, as
shown in a former chapter, Grant now set to work
to accomplish bia purpose by way of the great river
itself, without any definite plan. Or perhaps it
would be more accurate to say that all his early
plans failed, and dropping one he fell upon another,
until he did, at last, gain his purpose in a system of
daring and vigorous operations, which met the en-
thusiastic applause of his countrymen. The position
of Vickaburg was naturally strong, and the rebels
had exhausted their efforts to make it another of
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LIFE AND TIMES OF
r Gibralttirs of the West. Besides its oocupy-
one of the boldest and most elevated sites on
Lower Mississippi, it was surrounded by a netr
k of marshes, impassable bayous, and swampy
impenetrable forests. The fortifications ex-
led several miles along the Mississippi, quite ef-
.vely blockading it, and were held by about
ity-five thousand troops, under Johu C. Pember-
a vain soldier, but by no means able to cope
1 his dariug foe, a man who recognized no creed
success. Pemberton was under the command of
eral Joseph E. Johnsttm, who was watching
ecrnns from Chattanooga and Tullaboma, but ud-
mat«ly for his cause, he paid little regard, espe-
y when bard pressed^ to the superior wisdom of
iston.
Darly abandoning the idea of operating against
Lsburg by the river, or on the north, Grant began
evise means of getting his army to the south of
Farragut had twice run the gauntlet of the bat-
s, but it did notj unfortunately, occur to Grant,
[ he had had some dear experience, that . this
i be done again. After spending several mouths
n attempt to change the channel of the Missis-
i, thus neutralizing Vickaburg by rendering it
nlimd town, and in otherwise trying to open a
ir communicatioQ to the South on the west side,
ell as in trying to reach the rebel position by
ling a way to the head-waters of the Yazoo, he
i the experiment of running the batteries with
gunboats nnd transports, and succeeded so well
ovGoO'^lc
ABRAHAU LINOOLN. 425
as to detenoine at once to transfer his whole army,
then about thirty thousand atrong, to the south of
Vickaburg.
Toward the laat of March, 1863, his troops began
to move from Milliken's Bend on a circuitous and dif-
ficult route through Arkansas, first designing to strike
the river and cross it at New Carthage. But by rea-
son of the broken levee and flooded condition of the
country, the march was continued down to Hard
Times, opposite Grand Gulf, and the crossing was
finally effected without opposition at Bruinshurg, a
httle farther below, on the last day of April. Sher-
man hiid been left above to make a diversion with his
whole corps on the Yazoo in favor of this dnring
movement, and having accomplished his object, and
completely bewildering Pemberton as to the real de-
signs of hJB determined foes, he hastened with all
possible speed through Arkansas to overtake Grant.
On the 17th of April, General B. H. Grlerson,
with a thousand cavalrymen, set out to ride six hun-
dred miles from La Grange, Tennessee, on the Mis-
sissippi, to Baton Rouge, going to the east of all of
Pemberton's forces, and destroying his communicar-
tions, telegraph lines, mills, magazines, manufactoties,
and so forth. This task Grierson performed to the
consternHtiou and amazement of the country, and the
satisfaction of his chief. Having gained his hold on
the east side of the river, on the Ist of May, Grant
set out to execute the remainder of his now definite,
daring, and brilliant plan. Eight miles out, near Port
Gibson, the rebels were met under General J. S.
:b,GoO'^lc
426 LIFE AND TIME8 OF
BoweD, and defeated with coDsiderable loss. That
night they withdrew from Qt&nA Oulf, and at that
poiat Graut at once fixed hia temporary base of sap-
pUes on the river. He was now forced to aw»it
antil the 8th before Sherman could overtake him.
He now struck for the railroad in the rear of Ticks-
burg, captured Jackson, the State Capital, turned
upon Pemberton, and after severe engagements at
Champion's Hilt, Big Black River, and other points,
by the 19th had driven Pemberton into his fortifica*
tions at Vicksburg and pretty thoroughly sealed him
up. He had loi^ ago cut loose from Grand Gulf,
with a view of opening communications with his de-
pots of supplies above Vicksbui^ after its capture or
investment. This feat he now readily performed.
However distasteful such a course was to Grunt, he
now saw that he must settle down to a regular siege.
He called in all the spare forces from his own de<
partment, and the authorities at Washington gave
every aid possible, so that his total strength reached
seventy thousand men, and was great enough to re-
sist any force Johnston might bring upon his rear.
At the outset be had made two or three unsuccess-
ful attempts to carry the place by storm, and by the
first of July he was ready to try the experiment
again. Johnston was then approaching from Canton
after weeks of delay, and although Grant had Sher-
man, with an equal force, watching the rebel move-
ments, he became more and more anxious to finish
the work before him. In his own army there had
not been perfect harmony. To correct this difficulty
:b,GoO'^lc
ABRAHAM LINCOLN.
he had heen compeUed to relieve Ger
McCleraaDd, a really patriotic and abl
pestiferous politiciaD, who never could
the game of "personal honors." Ovei
there had been loud complaint, and Grai
was a general theme when one failure
was reported of his attempts to opea a
for the Mississippi. Donelsoa and Shi
hair-breadth escapes, and the country
nor had confidence in General Grant,
ginning he thought little of any schemt
tore of Vicksbarg by the river which
oa its southern or eastern side. The t
returning to the interior to operate upo
cording to his original design after the
Beauregard's army from Corinth, were
parent. And when he had performec
and unparalleled feat which placed hio
of Vick&burg with his communication
above it on the river, the certainty o
was not proved, and the country was st
At all events, admiration for his perf
out in the unexpected delay which folic
Grant was not, perhaps, unmindful of
one thing stood above them all and
with him, the coni^uest of the rebels a
ment of the power of the Government.
The certain sound of victory had i
over the Nation from Gettysburg on the
when the whole country was electrified
which came np with the speed of li]
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LIFT AND TIMB3 OF
ibnrg. On that auspicious day tlie power of tlie
Uion had crumbled away on the Mississippi.
b had made preparations for a final assault on
th. PembertoD saw what the result would be,
laving abandoned all hope of succor from John-
although that General was at that very moment
r to notify him that he was moving as rapidly
I could with a view of so occupying Grant's
;th as to enable him to cut his way out of the
le into which he had got by inability and dis-
ence, notified Grant that he was ready to ar-
the terms for surrender. At three o'clock on
dird day of July the two commanders met, and
lerton proposed the appointment of commission-
> negotiate upon the terms of surrender. This
cal trick was ever uppermost with rebel gen-
and no loyal soldier was ever more averse to
ing to it a moment than was General Grant,
eclined, and then listened patiently and without
1 of irritation to Pemberton's display of ill-humor
liscourtesy until he saw fit to end the meeting
I offer to put his terms in writing. And so at
clock on the morning of the 4th of July Vicks-
surrendered to General Grant,
ssides the munitions of war over twenty-five
and men, well, wounded, imd sick rebel soldiers,
surrendered at Vicksburg. This was, perhaps,
lost brilliant campaign of the war, furnishing
of the elements worthy of general admiration'
388 of the conditions of military criticism. But
d not been without cost. What did General
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ABRAHAM LINCOLN.
Qrant ever do nhicb was not at great cosi
a thousand lives had been lost> over sevei
bad been wounded, and 6ve hundred wei
Still, considering the great work done, tl
exceedingly moderate in comparison with
and undecisive conflicfs of the Army of th<
N. P. Banks, who had succeeded to thi
of the Depiirtment of the Gulf, and wh(
moving about with unvarying successes
time, with a view of co-operating with Grai
siege to Port Hudson, between Baton '.
Vicksburg. When the latter place fell,
commander nt Port Hudson seeing the use!
farther resistance, surrendered that place,
property and ten thousand soldiers, to Bai
9th of July. The small rebel forces at Heh
sas, and other points on the river were
diately broken up, and the Mississippi waa
one end to the odier as a national highwi
weak western end of the rebel section se
Uie main body. The following characteristic
Mr. Lincolu may appropriately stand at thi
" ExBcDTivB Uansion, Wai
"July 13,
" Hajor-Oenetal Gbant : —
" My Dear Gehebal, — I do not rememb
and I ever met personally. I write this now 9
acknowledgmeDt for the almost inestimable
have done the country. I write to say a wi
Wheo you first reached the vicinity of V
thought you should do what you finally did-
troops across the neck, run the batteries witl
ports, and thus go below ; and I never had
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430 UFE AND TIMES OF
except a general hope that you knew better than I, that
the Yazoo Pass expedition, and the like, could succeed.
When you got below, and took Port Gibson, Grand Gulf,
and vicinity, I thought you should go down the river and
join General Banks ; and when you turned northward, east
of the Big Black, I feared it was a mistake. I now wish
to make the personal acknowledgment, that yon were
right and I was wrong. Yours truly,
"A. LiNCOiJi."
The events which have just been briefly men-
tioned greatly changed the current of feeling in the
North. The darkest point had been passed. The
riotoas spirit was suppressed, and emancipation began
to be the accepted policy of the loyal people as well
as of the Administration. So pleased was Mr. Lin-
coln, who was now, to all appearances, fast becoming
pious in a really old-fashioned orthodox way, that
about the middle of July, thinking the circumstances
justified it, he issued a proclamation, setting apart
the 6th of August as a day of *' thanksgiving, praise,
and prayer." He said : " It is meet and right to
recognize and confess the presence of the Almighty
Father, and the power of his hand equally in these
triumphs and these sorrows." This proclamation and
the similar one, so soon following on its heels early
in October, as well as later matters of this kind,
will be noticed agfun in the chapter on Mr. Lincoln's
" religion."
After the battle of Murfreesboro or Stone River
General Rosecrana remained comparatively quiet
until the middle of the following summer. The
necessity for this long inaction in the Army of the
ovGoO'^lc
ABRAHAM LINGOLN. 431
Cumberland does not more clearly appear at this diiy
than it did then. However the case may have been,
it was after the middle of June, 1863, before Rose-
crans moved towards Chattanooga. His army was
over fifty thoasand strong, and the rebel army, under
Bragg, at Tullahoma, was, perhaps, equally large.
Still General Bragg retired as the Federals advanced,
nor did he see fit to halt long at Chattanooga. His
disposition to run misled Rosecrans into the belief
that he was not willing to fight.
At Lafayette, twenty'&ve miles south-east of Chat-
tanooga, Bragg began to gather re-enforcements and
concentrate, and watch. his opportunity to strike the
incautious and misled Federal commander, who was
wildly dividing his army in the pursuit. At last,
however, becoming somewhat doubtful of the purpose
of the rebel General, Rosecrans began to concentrate
his scattered army in the valley of the Chickamauga,
between Missionary Ridge and Pigeon Mountain,
two of the many mountain ridges lying west and
south of Chattanooga. At this period Longstreet
was started with his corps from Virginia to re-enforce
Bragg, and every exertion was made at Richmond to
gather an army which would be able to annihilate
Rosecrans. At last Bragg turned upon his pursaers,
and on the 18th of September the hostile armies were
facing each other, with Chickamauga Creek between
them. On that day Longstreet arrived, and during
the night Bragg crossed the creek with at least thirty
thousand of his troops. At ten o'clock General George
H. Thomas, occupying the left of the Federal line,
ovGoot^lc
LIFE AND TIMES OF
ering what he supposed to be n small, isolated
foroe on the west side of the creek, sent to cut
and the battle of Chickamauga b^an. This
ras spent in a fruitless effort on the part of
to turn the loil of the Union line with a view
:ting in its rear, and night eoded the conflict
10 very certain indications of what the lo-mor-
Tould bring. With unbroken line Rosecrans
his position, which, especially on Thomas's
was considerably strengthened by breastworks
: the night. Late on the morning of the 20th
ittle was renewed by a fierce and determined
t on Thomas. About midday, in Rosecrans's
to thwart the enemy's design on his left,
9,1 Thomas J. Wood mistaking his order to close
thdrew from his position in the line, leaving a
to which Longstreet sent his forces with great
losity. This was the turning point of the con-
RosecraDs and the whole left of his army were
back and dispersed. Rosecrans lost his cool-
nd presence of mind, and not knowing that his
army was not broken to pieces, did not him-
op until he reached Chattano(^. But half of
nion army had gathered around Thomas, who
, on and held his position until night, when he
iway, unpursued, to Chattanooga. The Union
in this great battle were over sixteen thou-
n killed, wounded, and missing — over one-tenth
m being killed. The rebel losses were not less,
erhaps, a thousand or two more. Rosecrans
brtified himself at Chattanoc^, but his com-
ov Google
ABRAHAM UNCOLN.
tnuDicatioDS were soon broken, to a {
his more powerful eoemy, and everj
situatioQ more desperate.
About the middle of October
in command of the three departmen
Alleghany Mountains and the MissiE
to Chattanooga, and Rosecrans was i
over the command of the Army of thi
General Thomas. Through the perse
tary Stanton, the President submitti
two corps from the Army of the Pol
ing these uoder General Hooker to
communications to Chattanooga, and i
there to fighting strength.
Toward the close of March, 1863
been placed in command of what was
partment of the Ohio, and in Augu
an army of fifteen thousnnd men fron
East Tennessee. General S. B. Bu<
commander in that region, retreated
rather went, according to his orders, '
Chattanooga. Burnside fortified hin
Knozville, and occupied his array i
ments, which, in their attempts to cli
of rebels, were occasionally whipped,
to the aid of Rosecrans, as the auth<
ington expected him to do.
The ablest military head in thi
turned out, was now in command of
region, and the good results of the ai
soon apparent On the 19th of Octol
ov Google
4S4 LIFE AND TIMES OF
telegrnphed from Louiaville to Thomas to hold out at
all hazards. The answer he receired was, "I will
do so till we starve." That was the ring to iospire
an able and determined commander. On the 23d
Grant was at Chattanooga, and after a reoonnoissance
on the following morning, fixed upon his plan of
operations. The rebel army occupied the nortbeni
declivity and crest of Lookout Mountain and tho
whole westeni declivity and crest of Missionary
Ridge, as welt as the intervening narrow valley of
Chattanooga Greek. The north end of Lookont
Moantatn to the soath of Chattanooga points well op
to the Moccasin or great bend in the Tennessee
River, and Missionary Ridge overlapping this point
on its soutli extends north And south up the river
some distance ubove Chattanooga, to the eastward
of that city, all of these historic monnbiin elevations
and the city itself being south or east of the Ten-
nessee. Lookout Mountain commanded the river
opposite the Moccasin penin.sula or great bend; and
from the north end of Missionary Ridge to the river,
and some distance up it, extended a strong rebel
picket-line. The rebel pickets also extended from
Lookout Mountain along the river some distance be-
low Rnccoon Mountain. The Union picket-line
stretched along several miles above and below Chat-
tanooga, but on the west and north side of the river.
In front of Chattanooga, facing Missionary Ridge in
a semicircle, with one end on the river above and
the other on the river below the town, lay Uie main
body of the Union force, strongly intrenched, when
ovGoO'^lc
Wip^
ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 436
Grant took command. On the right and left of
Thomas, who occupied this semicirote, Grant formed
hie right land left; Hooker with his twenty-three
thoasand, or its equivalent, from the Army of the
Potomac, was to cross the river at Bridgeport, moTO-
up, carry Lookout Mountain, and form the right
wing; and Sherman, who was making his wiiy
throngh the country from the Miasissippi, wae to
cross the river above the town, and form the left
wing of the army.
In the meantime the rebel authorities, greatly
against the better judgment/ of Brii^, had forced him
to detach twelve or fifteen thousand of his men
under Longstreet to Gast Tennessee, who had beiiten
Bumside's scattered troops and besieged him in his
fortifications at Knoxville. Grant became very anx-
ious and impatient about the relief of Bnrnside, but •
notified him that he must hold out until Bragg was
whipped. Not until the 23d of November did Sher^
man get up, and the movements for the battle of
Chattanooga begin. On that night and the following
morning Sherman succeeded in crossing the river on
Thomas's left flank, and before dark on the 24th had
driven everything before him and firmly secured the
whole north fend of Missionary Ridge. On this day
"Old Hooker" took his grandest stride in the race
for military glory. By early morning Hooker had
crossed the river, capturing the rebel pickets, or
driving them before him, nnd long before night had
cleared the ru^ed nnd furrowed north slope of Look-
out Mountain, and the plateau above. A light rain
ov Google
UFE AlTD TIMES OF
\ in in the iDorning, and throngfaoat the day
d cloud concealed the actors in this wonderful
from Ihe army in the valley. Only the crash
irms and the flashes of fire could g^ve any
the progress of Hooker. It was, indeed, n
bore the clouds. The night came on, and the
nred, and the cloads passed from the valley,
II Hooker stru^led around the rugged mount-
). But DOW the fires kindled by his reserves,
I flashes of his muskets plainly told the anx-
.tchers below what he was doing. Shout after
Tor Jo Hooker swept over the valley; and
he morning of the 25th broke Hooker's left
on Thomas's right, just as had been designed,
t rebels had not only been driven from Look-
untain, but also from the valley of the Chttt-
. to Missionary Ridge, and the flag of the
loated in the breeze on the summit of Lopkout
,in. The rebel army was now pressed in on
lary Eidge, with Hooker ready to move on its
d Sherman alrendy grasping its right flank,
hing had worked as if the will of the master
nd been consulted, and Qrant never had had
lod reasons for feeling that be would be master
and.
the morning of the 26th Hooker swept on
^be valley, being several hours delayed in get-
sr Chattanooga Creek, and when night came
ven the enemy from the side and summit of
th end of Missionary Ridge, having captured
thousands, and driven others into the embrace
ovGoO'^lc
ABRAHAM LI»
of Thomas, done all that he ht
do, aod stopped because the ei
Early in the iDoming Sher
battle on the left, and soon exi
the ridge into Chickamauga '^
rebel communications, attract
who hurled his main strength
From Orchard Knob in t
Clraat saw every movement, a
accomplished just what he hi
rebel Qeneral to weaken his
of his right and line of como
forward his center, and Thoma
a desperate struggle up the sid
The nature of the ground and
them soon broke up the tines,
masses bis men climbed the
summit was gained, and here
hand-to-hand confltct. On ca
astic masses. Bragg saw thai
with his fleeing army rushed
the ridge. The wonderful bat
over, the most brilliant of the
The pursuit of Bragg was
of the 26th, but this amountt
Hooker in his impatience fe
Kinggold, Georgia, and whs s(
entire Union loss in the Chat
nearly six thousand, less thai
killed. The rebel loss was ah
8\i thousand being prisoners.
ovGoO'^lc
438 LIFE AND TIHE8 OF
Sherman was at onoe started to Knoxville, which
he reached early in December, coDipeliing Longstxeet
to retreat toward Virginia; and having thos relieved
Bumeide he marched back to Chattanooga.
A vast number of more or lees important minor
engagements took place in this year, and up to the
end of the war, on the Atlantic and Gnlf coasts, in
West Virginia, in Kentucky, Tennessee, and in Mis-
souri, and other parts of the trans-Mississippi region,
of which little need be said in this work. While the
result of the war would have been the same withont
any of these nnmerous lesser events, they all played
some part in the grand total, if no more than to aid
in the solution of the general question of endurance
and exhaustion. Many of them were qnite brilliant
on both sides, and deserving of record in a detailed
history of the more appalling fcHtures of a bloody
war, if it may not be morally questionable whether
bloody, wicked, or wrong events should ever be per-
petuated in the history of mankind, or made a part
of the story of a people.
In 1863 General Q. A. Gillmore took possession
of Morris Island, captured Fort Wagner in Charles-
ton Harbor, and battered down Fort Sumter ^in the
most wonderful bombardment the world ever heard,
perhaps.
In Missouri the Administration had great difficulty
in the man^ement of political affairs. Two loyal
factions arose, which never could be harmonized. In
the spring of 1863 the President removed General
Curtis, who sided with one of the factions. From the
ovGoO'^lc
ABRAHAM UNCOLK 489
following lines it may readily be seen how annoying
Missouri difficultiee had become to Mr. Liocota : —
" Your dispatch of to-day is jast reoeived. It is very
paiafal to me that yoa, in Missouri, cao not, or will not,
settle yoDF factional quarrel among yourselves. I have
been tormented with it beyond endurance, for months, by
both sides. Neither side pays the least respect .to my ap-
peals to your reason. I am now compelled to take hold
of the caee. A. Lincoln."
The President then sent this letter to General
Schofield, which soon got into print: —
raioi , _ ._.
" May 27, 1863.
"General J. M. Sobofuld:—
"Dear Sib, — Having removed General Curtis, and
assigned you to the command of the Department of the
Miseouri, I think it may be of some advantage to me. to
state to you why I did it. I did not remove Cieneral
Curtis because of my full conviction that be had done
wrong by comraissioo or omission. I did it because of a
conviction in my mind that the Union men of Missouri,
oonstituting, when united, a vast majority of the people,
have entered into a persistent, factious quarrel among
themselves, General Curtis, perhaps not of choice, being
the head of one faction, and Governor Gamble that of the
otheiw After months of labor to reconcile the difficulty,
it seemed to grow worse and worse, until I felt it my
duty to break it up somehow, and as I could not remove
Governor Gamble, I had to remove General Curtis. Now
that yoa are in the position, I wish you to pndo nothing
merely because General Curtis or Governor Gamble did
it, but to exercise your own judgment, and do right fot
the public interest. Let your military measures be strong
enough to repel the invaders and keep the peace, and not
ov Google
'•--ITT-'
UFE AND TIMES OF
TODg as to unnecessarily hsrass and persecute the peo-
It is a difficult role, and so much greater will be the
)r if you perform it well. If both factions, or neither,
! abuse you, you will probably be about right. Be-
', of being assailed by oue and praised by the other.
" Yours truly, A. Lincoln."
But General SchoGeld failed to give satisractioQ,
the trouble went on. The Radicala wanted the
jident to send Fremont or Ben Butler to take
•ge of aflttira in that State. In August, 1863,
Dtrell, who was called a guerrilla, entered Law-
le, Kansas, in the night, with a baud of follower^,
dered nearly a hundred and fifty of the citizens,
burned nearly two hundred houses. All Ger-
s and negroes, especially, were killed, who could
found by the murderers. The action Schofield
: in this affair greatly displeased the Germans,
< were disposed to be dissatisfied with everybody
■ fniled to take the course they would have
len for him.
[n the following characteiiatic, if not wholly digni-
, letter, Mr. Lincoln sets out the case with suffi-
t interest to give it a place here as a picture of
y of the difficoltiea under which he labored: —
D. Charles Drake and Others, Committee : —
'Gentlemen, — Your original address, presented on the
ult., and the four supplementary ones presented on t^e
DsL, have been carefully considered. I hope you will re-
the other duties claiming my attention, together with the
t length and importance of these documents, as constituting
fficient apology for my not hftviog responded sooner.
ovGoo'^lc
ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 441
"Theefl papers, framed for a common object, conuet of the
tbingB demanded, and the reasoqe for demandiag them.
'"Die thiogB demanded are:-<-
•'FireL That Geueral Schofield sbaU be relieved, and Gen-
eral Butler be appointed aa Commander of tlie Military De-
partment of Missouri.
"Second. l^atthe^Btem of enrolled militia in Missouri may
be broken up. and national forces be substituted for It; and,
" Third. That at elections, persona may uut be allowed to
vote who are not entitled by law to do bo.
" Among the reasons given, enough of suflering and wrong
b> Union men, Is certainly, and I suppose truly, stated. Yet
the whole case, as presented, fiula to convince me that General
Schofield, or the enrolled militia, is reaponaible for that suffer-
ing and wrong. The whole can be explained on a more cbar-
itabie, and, aa I think, a more ratioual hypothesis,
"We are in civil war. In such cases tliere always is a
m^n question ; but in this esse that question is a perplexing
compound — ^Union and slavery. It thus becomes a question
not of two sides merely, but of at least four sides, even among
tboee who are for the Union, saying nothing of those who are
against it. Thus, those who are for the Union with, but not
m&ovt davery; those for it vsHhout but not witA; those for it
t0t(& or vn&md, but prefer it leiih; and those for it viiA 01 wiK-
Old, but prefer it wiihout.
" Among these, again, is a Bubdivision of those wbo are for
gradual, but not for immediaie, and those who are for immedv^,
but not for gradual, extinc^n of slavery.
"It is easy to conceive that all these shades of opinion and
even more, may be sincerely entertained by honest and truthful
men. Yet all being for the Union, by reaaon of these diffir-
ences each will prefer a different way of sustaining the Union.
At once, sincerity is questioned, and motives are assailed.
Actual war coming, blood grows hot, and blood is spilled.
Thought is forced from old channels into conf^iNon. Deception
breeds and tbrivea. Confidence dies, and universal suspicion
reigna Each man feels an impulse to kill his neighbor, leet he
he killed by him. Bevenge and retaliation follow. And all
this, as before said, may be among honest men only. But this
ov Google
442 UFE AND TIMES OF
is not aO. Every foul bird oomes abroad, and every dirty rep-
tile rises up. These add crime to ooDfoaion. Stroag measures
deemed indispensable but harsh at beat, sudi men maice wnrse
by mahtdministratioii. Murden for old grudges, and murders
for pelf, proceed under any cloak that will beet serve for the
'Occasion.
"These causes amply account for what has oeenned in
Missouri, without ascribing it to the weaknen or wickedness of
any general. The Dewrspaper files, those chroniclers of current
events, will show that the evils now comphined (^ were quite
as prevalent under Fremont, Hunter, Halleck, and CurtJa, aa
under Bchofield. If the former had greater force opposed to
them, they also had greater force with which to meet it. When
the organized rebel army left the State, the main Federal
f(HVe had to go also, leaving the department commander at
home, relativ^y no stronger than before. Without disparaging
any, I affirm with oonfidence, that no commander of tl«t de-
partment has, in proportion to his means, done better than
General Schofield.
"The first specific charge gainst General Schofield is, thmt
the enrolled militia was placed under his command, whereas it
had not been placed under the command of General Curtia.
The ^t is, I brieve, true ; but you do not point out, nor can
I conceive, how that did, or could, iiyure loyal men or the
Union cause.
" You charge that General Curtis being superseded by Qea-
eral Schofield, Franklin A. Dick was superseded by James O.
Broadhead as Provosi-Marshal-General. Ko very specific show-
ing is made as to how. this did or could injure the Union cause.
It recalls, however, the condition of things, as presented to me,
which led to a change of commander of that department.
"To restrain contr^Mnd intelligence and trade, a system of
searches, seizures, permits, and passes, had been introduced, I
think, by General Fremont When General Hatleck came, he
found and continued the system, aod added an order, applica-
ble to some parta of the Stale, to levy and collect contributions
from noted rebels, to compensate losses, and relieve destitution
caused by the Rebellion. The action of General Fremont and
General Halleck, as stated, constituted a sort of Eastern which
ovGoO'^lc
ABRAHAM LINCOLN. • 443
Qmieral CurUi tontul in fiill operation vhen h« took command
of the department. That there vas a necessity for Bomething
of the sort was clear; but that it could only be justified by
8t«m necesuty, and that it was Hable to great abuse in admin-
istration, was equally clear. Agents to exeoate it, contrary to
tbe great prayer, were led into temptattiHi. Some might, while
others would not, resist that temptation. It was not possible
to hold any to a very strict accountability ; and those yielding
to the temptation, would sell permits and passes to those who
would pay ilaost and most readily for them ; and would seize
IHX)perty and coUect levies in the ^teet way to fill their own
pockets. Money bang the object, the man having money,
whether loyal or disloyal, would be a victim. This practice
doubtless existed to some extent, and it was a real additional
evil that it- could be, and was, plaunbly charged to exist, in
greater extent than it did.
" When General Curtis took command of the department,
Hr. Dick, against whom I never knew anything to allege, bad
general charge of this system. A controversy in regard to it
rapidly grew into almost unmanf^eable proportions. One side
ignored the nMSstify and magnified the evils of the system,
while the other ignored the evils and magnified the necessity ;
and each bitterly assaded the other. I could not fail to eee
that the oontroveny enlarged in the same proportion as the
pn^essed Union men there distinctly took sides in two opposing
political parties. I exhausted my wits, and very nearly my
patience also, in efforts to convince both that the evils they
charged on each other were inherent in the case, and could not
he cured by giving either party a victory over the otiker.
" Plainly, the irritating system was not to be perpetual ;
and it was plausibly urged that it could be modified at once
with advantage. The case could scarcely be worse, and whether
it could be made better could only be determined by a trial.
In thb view, and not to ban or brand General Curtw, or to
give a victory to any party, I made the change of commander
for the department. I now learn that soon after this change
Hr. Dick was removed, and that Mr. Broadhead, a gentleman
of no less good character, was put in the place. The 'mere
&ct of this change is more distinctly complained of than is
ov Google
UFE AND TIMES OF
inj
conduct of the new Dfflc«r, or other omeequences of the
lire.
"I gKVB the new commander no inBtmctiona as to the ad-
ministration of the eystem mentioned, beyond nbat is contained
in the private letter afterward surreptitiously published, in which
I directed him to act Bolely fur the public good, and independ-
ently of both parties, \either anything you have presented me,
nor anything I have otherwise learned, has convinced me that
he has been unfiuthful to his charge.
"Imbecility is urged as one cause for removiag General
Bchofield, and the lat« massacre at lAwreooe, Kansas, is
preaaed as evidence of that imbecility. To my mind that &ct
scarcely tends to prove the proposition. That massacre is only
an example of what Qrierson, John Morgan, and many others,
might hare repeatedly done on their reepecUve raids, had they
chosen to incur tbe personal hazard, and posseased tlie fiendish
hearts to do it.
" The charge is made that General Scbofiehl, on purpose to
protect the Lawrence murderers, would not allow them to be
pursued into Missouri. While no punishment oonid be too
sudden or too severe for those murderers, I am well satisfied
that the preventing of tjie threatened remedial raid into Mis-
souri was the only way to avoid an indiscriminate massacre
there, including probably more innocent than guilty. Instead
of oondemning, I therefore approve what I understand Gleneral
Schofield did in that rei^ieot. '
" The charge that General Schofield has purposely withheld
protection from loyal people, and purposely facilitated the
objects of the disloyal, are alfa^ther beyond my power of
belief. I do not arraign the veradty of gentlemen as to the
facts complained of; but I do more than question the judgment
which would infer that these facts occurred in accordance with
the purposes of General Schofield.
" With my present views, I must decline to remove General
Schofield. Id this I decide nothing against General Butler.
I sincerely wish it were convenient to as^gn him a suitable
command.
'' Id order to meet some existing evils, I have addressed a
letter of instruction to General Schofield, a copy of which I
ovGoO'^lc
ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 445
inoloee to you. Ab to ihe ' enrolled militia,' I aball endeavor
to ascertain, better than I dow know, what ia its exact value.
Let me dow aay, however, that your proposal to substitute
national force for the ' enrolled militia,' implies that, in your
jndgment, the latter lb doing something which needs to be done ;
and if BO, the propoeition to throw that force away, and to
supply its place by bringing other forces from the field where
they are urgently needed, seems to me very extraordinary.
Whence shall they comef Shall they be withdrawn from
Banks, or Grant, or Steele, or BoBecransf
" Few things have been so grateful to my anxious feelings,
as when in June last the local force in Missouri uded General
Bchofield to so promptly send a large geoeral force to the
relief of General Grant, tiien investing Vicksburg, and menaced
from without by General Johnston. Was this all wrong?
Should the enrolled militia then have been broken up, and
General Herron kept from Grant, to police Missouri f So far
from finding cause to object, I confess to a sympathy for what-
ever relieves our general force in Missouri, and allows it to
serve elsewhere.
" I tlieretbre, as at present advised, can not attempt the
destruction of the enrolled militia of Missouri. I may add that
the force being under the national military control, it is also
within the proclamation with regard to the luAeat eorpui.
" I concur in the propriety of your request in r^ard to
elections, and have, as you see, directed General Schofield ac-
cordingly. I do not feel justified to enter upon the broad field
yon present in regard to the political diflerences between Radi-
cals and Conservatives. From time to time I have done and
£aid wbat.appeared to me proper to do and eay. The public
knows it wdl. It obliges nobody to follow me, and I trust it
oUigee me to follow nobody. The Radicals and Conservatives
each i^ree with me in some things and disagree in others. I
oould wish both to agree with me in all things ; for then they
would agree with each other, and would he too strong for any
foe frvm any quarter. They, however, choose to do otherwise,
and I do not question their right. I, too, shall do what seema
to be my duty. I bold whoever commands in Missouri or elBe-
where responsible to me, and not to either Radicals or Conserv-
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jvGooi^lc
ABBAHAU LINCOLN. 447
All these things brought from Mr. Lincoln this
order : —
"ElwnjTITl MilHBION, WiBHINQTON, \
"July 30, ISGJ. ;
" It is the duty of every goveromeDt to give protection
to its citizeDB, of whatever class, color, or cooditioD, and
especially to those who are du)y oi^nised as soldiers in
the public service. The law of nations, and the usages
and customs of war, as Carried on by civilized powers,
pernqit no distinction as to color in the treatment of pris-
oners of war as public enemies. To sell or enslave any
captured person, on account of his color, anil for no offense
against the laws of war, is a relapse into barbarism, and a
crime against the civilization of the age.
"The Government of the United States will give the
same protection to all its soldiers ; and if the eneray shall
sell or enslave any one because of his color, the offense
shall he punished by retaliation upon the enemy's prisoners
in our possession.
" It is therefore ordered that for every soldier of the
United States killed in violation of the laws of war, a
rebel soldier shall be executed ; and for every one enslaved
by the enemy, or sold into slavery, a rebel soldier shall
be placed at hard labor on public works, and continued at
SDch labor until the other shall be released and receive
the treatment due to a prisoner of war.
"Abbahah Lincoln.
" By onler of Secretary of War.
" E. D. TawtiiBMD, AwisMnt Adjntant-Generat."
While this checked the cruelty practiced toward
negro soldiers to some extent, the whole affair led to
the suspension of the exchange of prisoners of any
kind. And this gave rise to the horrors of Ander-
eonville, Libby, nnd other rebel prisons. The
propositioD to renew the exchange of prisoners was
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448 LIFE AND TIMES OF
imide by the rebels id the summer of 1864, in which
tbey were actuated by two or three motives. They
needed all their able-bodied men, and under the old
plan of paroling prisoners they retarned theirs to the
iirmy without waiting for exchange. Then, as their
military strength began to crumble in the West, and
Sherman began his march toward the Atlantic, they
saw that the prisoners in the pens in the South would
receive his earliest attention. And, finally, they
wanted them to return to their homes to vote for
McClellan, offering freedom to all who would agree
to vote the Democratic ticket. It may also be
claimed that there wad a moral compunction involved
in the disposition to resume the exchange, tm Mr.
Chilton, the Inspector-General, submitted it as his
opinion to the rebel war department that " the con-
dition of affairs iit Andersonville is a reproach to us
as a nation."
Still the cruelty towards the negro soldiers ^as
continued at every practicable opportunity, and under
every pretext. In the spring of 1863, N. B. Forest,
a brutally coarse and uneducated rebel officer,
startled the country by getting possession of Fort
Pillow by a piece of unsoldiery trickery, and then
putting to death the greater part of the soldiers after
they had thrown down their arms. The garrison
was composed of five hundred and thirty-eight
soldiers of whom two hundred and sixty-two were
colored. Not even the women and children were
spared, but all were murdered, heedless of ories for
mercy.
ovGoO'^lc
ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 4^9
A very extensive Indian war broke out in 1862,
and this for soVne time made a heavy demand on the
resources of the Government. At the outset of the
Rebellion' some of the Indians in the Territory were
induced by rebel iigents to join in the irar for slavery,
many of them being negro slave-owners. Through
these rebel Indian idlies, and, perhaps, by other in-
fluences, the Indians of the western border became
generally unfriendly or hostile. And finally the
Sioux in Minnesota fell to murdering the settlers
and burning their houses. They attacked New Ulm,
and Yellow Medicine on the Minnesota River, and
even Forts Ridgeley and Abercrombie ; but by the
fall of 1863 they were beaten and brought to terms
of peace.
At the close of the war the naval power of the
United Stated had reached magnificent proportions.
An earnest, able, and unflinchingly true man was at
the head of the Navy arm of the Government. In
silent, unwearying, and watchful zeal he pressed for-
ward the great work assigned to him. At the dawn
of peace more than seven hundred vessels were
under the authority of the Department, and nearly
a hnndred' of them were iron-clads. Seven thousand
six hnndred men were in the service at the begin-
ning, and nearly fifty-two thousand at the close of
the war, with many thousands more, artisans and
"laborers," in the navy-yards. The work of this
branch of the Government mainly took three natural
directions : operations at sea, operations on the rivers,
and the coast blockade. The great naval pioket-line
ov Google
LIFE AND XIHEa OF
1 Chesapeake Bay to the month of the
and to England, especially, the most
t of the war was the success of this
ter the Monitor was launched and had
it battle in Ebtnpton Roads, the ques-
macy, if there was any, between the
nd the insargents was settled forever,
verance of the rebels was great, and
conflicts took place before they aban-
ly futile their hope of a nary. Even
tensions in this way were broken by
1 of all their vessels on the vast coast,
ous rivers, the blockade was a difficult;
and England and other avaricious oa-
stantly looking for opportunities with
essels to drop in at unguarded gates
Tor the rebels. Especially was the far-
xas beset with blockade-ranners. Be-
1 occasional foreign vessel had entered
de for Matamoras, Now hundreds
is point; but it was well understood
object was intercoarse with the rebels
tier had scarcely begun his phenomenal
om people at New Orleans when the
ired that port open to the world. So
desire of the Government to meet ex-
cpectations that this policy was pur-
3 of any consequence oaptured on the
ket-line. While this relieved the ap-
r the blockade, it increased the oppor-
ovGoO'^lc
ABBAHAM LINCOLN
tunities of the rebels to reach the
uid abettors. Hardly a battle on
rivers or oa the Atlantic or Gulf
without the wd of the mivy, and in
could have been fongbt without that
tvere often turned into soldiers, and
guns of the vessels could not be oth(
they were hauled ashore and placed
Many of the most daring, patriotic,
the country were engaged in this
branch of the oatioual power. And
Nation's honor more nobly maintaii
navy and the officers of the Departi
The tendency of Mr. Seward to
the general direction of all departn
ministration was stubbornly resist
cautions and politic Secretary of th<
age had not dimmed the fire of lifi
evil practice was to precede any a
ministration by a course of conduct
in which he expected the Administrv
One of the many instances of this ki
ances to Lyons, the British Ministei
that the mail-ba^ on captured
should be sent to their destinatio
opened. This Mr. Welles resi^d t
terference with the affairs of his
also as abandoning to pirates and tl
Rebellion what would often furnish
their condemnation. But Mr. Liu
induced, from motives of policy or :
ov Google
462 LIFE AND TIMES OF
with Mr. Seward in this importaat matter at a tame
when this Kation was always on the point of an
open rupture with England.
When the rebels had exhausted their own efforts
and resources to build war-vessels, Eugland came to
their aid. With the greatest difficulty Mr. Adams
prevailed on the British Ministry to stop the "Laird
rams" which were preparing to enter the rebel
service, assuring " Lord " Russell that, " at this
moment, when one of the iron-clad vessels is on the
point of departure from this kingdom on its hostile
emind against the United States, it would be super-
fluous for me to point out to your lordship that this
is war."
Stall the British Ministry and the "governing
class" generally in England were favorable to the
cause of the Rebellion, and what Hid could be given
it in ship-building was given. Indeed, England took
up the cause of the Rebellion on the sea, and was
beaten.
Attfaougfa the rebels constructed themselves sev-
eral more or less formidnble war^vessels, as the Mer-
rimae, the Tennessee, the Albemarle, the Louisiana, the
Mantisaaa, the Mississippi, the Atlanta, ihe Virgmia, the
Savannah, the Sumter, the Nashville, and the Arkaor
SOS, yet it was reserved for England to furnish them
some of the most powerful sea-going vessels of the
period. Among these were the Florida, the TaUa-
hassee, the Chiekamauga, the Georgia, the Shenandoah,
and the Alabama. With these piratical vessels
American commerce was driven from the oceans.
ovGoO'^lc
ABRAHAM LINCOLIf.
Several handred merchanWessels v
them, and millions of property deetr
a part of England's share in the gre.
One of the great events of the ^
quest of the Merrimack (Merrimac)
Monitor. Although this denoted tL
new era in Uie constmction of wai
expectations for the monitors wer<
in the subsequent history of the v
theory of the English broadside wae
Perhaps the most important m
war, on account of Its double significi
was the destruction of the Ahhama.
built at Liverpool by a member of tl
ment, and against the remonstranci
was allowed to go to sea in the fa
armament and her crew were entir
her captain was Raphael Semmes.
seas wherever she went, and' it bega
of England, and the rebels, that tfa
had nothing to contend with her, i
this was true was not without sup]
At last early in June, 1864, she wen
of Cherbourg, France. On the 19t
the United States war-ship, Kearsar^
size and armament, commanded by
Winslow, appeared at the entrance o
oflered battle. However much Se
avoid this conflict, he could not do
and French sympathizers expecte
There ooald be no doubt about the
ov Google
J, Google
ABRAHAM UNOOLN.
CHAPTER Xi:
1863— WAR OF THE REBELLION— CONG
TER OF 1863— THE MESSAGE— THE
LAW REPEALED— MR. LINCOLN'S
AND MISTAKES.
CONGRESS assembled ("first s
eighth ") agaia on the 7th of
and sat until July 4, 1864. AUfaouj
notably Ohio and New York, had it
position or Democratic represental
complexion of the two Houses was i
at this time, the Republicans and
Union Men " having a large majoril
Schayler Colfax, of Indiana, wai
of the House, receiving one hundre
Samuel S. Cox, of Ohio, received
Democratic votes, and thirty-nine 1
tered, and six members were absem
Edward McPberson, of Qettysbui
was elected clerk. On the followin
dent sent in his
THIRD ANNUAL MESS
PKLLOW-CmEBNH Of TRI SlNATI AND HoCBB O
' Another year of heatth, and of suffici
vesto, baa pasaed. For tbeee, aod eepecia!
ov Google
456 LIFE AND TIMES OF
wmditioD of our national a0ura, our renewed and profounde«t
gratitude to God b due.
We remain in peace and friendship witli foreign powera.
The efforts of disloyal citiseDS of the United States to in-
volve us in foreign vars, to aid au iiiexcusable insurrection,
have been unavailing. Her Britannic Majesty's government,
as was justly expected, have exercised their authority to preveot
the departure of new hostile expeditions 'from British ports.
The emperor of France haa, by a like proceeding, promptly
vindicated the neutrality which he proclaimed at the banning
of the contest Questions of great intricacy and impprtance
have arisen out of the blockade and other belligerent opera-
tions, between the Government and several of the maritime
powers, but they have been discussed, and, aa fkt at was pos-
sible, accommodated in a spirit of irankness, justice, and mutual
good-will. It is especially gratifying that our prize courts, by
the impartiality of their adjudications, have commanded the re-
spect and confidence of maritime powers.
The supplemental treaty between the United States and
Great Britain for the suppression of tJie African slave-trade,
made on the 17th day of February last, haa been duly ratified
and carried into execution. It is believed that, so &r as Amer*
ican ports and American oitizens are concerned, that inhnman
and odious traffic has been brought to an end.
I shall submit, for the consideration of the Senate, a con-
vention for the adjustment of poesessory cl^ms in Washington
Territory, arising out of the treaty of the I5th June, 1846,
between the United States and Great Britain, and which have
been the source of some disquiet among the cid2eng of that now
rapidly improving part of the country.
A novel and important question, involving the extent of the
maritime jurisdiction of Spain in the waters which surround the
island of Cuba, has been debated without reaching an agree-
ment, and it is proposed, in an amicable spirit, to refer it to the
arbitrament of a friendly power. A couveutiou for that pur-
pose will be submitted to the Senate.
I have thought it proper, subject to th9 approval of the
Senato, to concur with the interested commercial powers in an
arrangement for the liquidation of the Scheldt duea upon tbe
ovGoO'^lc
ABRAHAH LINCOLN. 457
principlea Thiolt bave been beretofore adopted in regard to tbe
impoets upon naTigaHon in the watera of DeDinark.
The long pending coDtroveray between thia GoTernment and
that of Chiti, touching the seizure at Sitaoa, in Peru, by Chilian
officers, of a large amount in treasure belonging to citizens of
the United States, has been brought to a close by tbe award of
his majesty the king of tbe Betgiana, In whose arbitration tbe
questioti waa referred by tbe parties. The subject was thor-
oughly and patiently examined by that justly respected magis-
trate, and although the sum awarded to tbe clumants may not
have been as large as they expected, there is no reason to dis-
trust the wisdom of bis majesty's decision. That decision was
promptly complied with by Chili, vhen intelligence in r^ard to
it reached that country.
The joint commissioD, under the Act of tbe last seeaiod, for
carrying into- effect tbe convention with Peru on the subject of
daima, has been organized at Lima, and is engaged in the busi-
ness intrusted to it.
Difficulties concerning interoceanic transit through N^ica-
ragua are in course of amicable adjustment
In conformity with principles set forth in my last annua)
message, I have received a repreeentative from tbe United
States of Colombia, and have accredited a minister to that Re-
public
Incidents ocourring in the progren of our Civil War have
forced upon my attention the uncertain state of international
questions touching the rights of foreigners in this country and
of United States citizens abroad. In regard to some govern-
ments these rights are at least partially defined by treaties. In
no instance, however, is it expressly stipulated that, in tbe
event of civil war, a foreigner residing in this country, within
tbe lines of tbe insurgents, is to be exempted from tlie rule
which classes him as a belligerent, in whose behalf tbe govern-
ment of his country can not expect any privileges or immuni-
ties distinct from that character. I regret to say, however,
that such claims have been put forward, and, in some instances,
in behalf of foreigaers who have lived in the United States the
greater part of their lives.
There is reason to believe that many persons bom in fordgn
ov Google
468 UFE AND TIMES OP
countries, vbo hare declared their intendons to become citiieDe,
or vbo have been fuUy iiatura]ized, have evaded the militaiy
duty required of them by denying the fact, and thereby throw-
ing upon the Government the burden of proof. It has been
found difficult or impracticable to obUun this proof, &om Ihe want
of guides to the proper sourcea of informatioD. These might be
supplied by requiring clerks of courts, where declarations of
intentions may be made or naturalizations effected, to send,
periodically, lists of the names of the persons naturalized, or
declaring tbeir intention to Iiecome dtizens, to the Secretary of
the Interior, in whose Department those names might be ar-
ranged and printed for general information.
There is also reason to believe that foreigners frequently
become citizens of the United States for the sole purpose of
evading duties imposed by the laws of their native countries,
to which, on becoming naturalized here, they at - once repair,
and, though never returning to the United States, they still
clum the interposition of this Government as citizens. Many
altercations and great prejudices have heretofore arisen out of
this abuse. It is therefore Bubmitted to your serious condder-
ation. It might be advisable to fix a limit beyond which do
citizen of the United States reading abroad may claim the in-
terposition of his Government.
The right of sufirage has often been assumed and ezerdsed
by aliens, under pretenses of naturalization, which they have
disavowed when drafted into the military service. I submit the
expediency of such an amendment of the law as will make the
fact of voting an estoppel against any plea of ezeroptioD from
military service, or other civil obligaUoD, on the ground of
alienage.
In common with other Western powets, our relations with
Japan have been brought into serious jeopardy, through the
perverse opposition of the hereditary aristocracy of the empire
to the enlightened and liberal policy of the Tycoon, designed
to bring the country into the society of nations. It is 'hoped,
although not with entire confidence, that these difficulties may
be peacefully overcome. I ask your attention to the claina of
the Minister residing there for the damages he sustained iu the
deeu-uction by fire of the remdence of the legation at Yedo.
ovGoO'^lc
ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 459
Satisfkctory arrangemeuta have been made with the .em-
peror of Russia, which, it is believed, will result in eSectiug a
continuous Une of tel^^ph through that empire from our
Pftciflc coast
I recommend to your &vorable consideratiou the subject of
an international telegraph across the Atlantic Ocean ; and also
of a telegraph between this Capital and the national forts along
the Atlantic sea-board and the Gulf of Mexico. Such com-
municationa, established with any reasonable outlay, would be
economical as well aa efiective aids to the diplomatic, military,
and naval service.
The consular system of the Uoited States, under the enact-
ments of the last Congress, begins to be eelf-sustaining ; and there
is reason to hope that it may become entirely ao, with the in-
crease of trade which will ensue whenever peace is restored.
Our Ministers abroad have been faithful in defending American
righta. In protecting commercial interests, our consuls have
neceeaarily hJsd to encounter increased labors and reqwnsibili-
ties growing out of the war. These they have, for Uie moat
part, met and discharged with zeal and efficiency. This ac-
knowledgment justly includes those consuls who, residing in
Morocco, Egypt, Turkey, Japan, China, and other Oriental
countries, are charged with complex functions and extraor-
dinary powers.
The condition of the several oi|;anized Territories is gener-
ally satis&ctory, although Indian disturbances in New Mexico
have not been entirely supprened. The mineral resources of
Colorado, Nevada, Idaho, New Mexico, and Arizona, are prov-
ing far richer than has been heretofore understood. I lay be-
fore yon a communication on this subject from the Governor
of New Mexico. I again submit to year consideration the
exipediency of establishing a system for the encouragement oi
immigration. Although this source of national wealth and
strength is again flowing with greater freedom than for several
yeare before the insurrection occurred, there is atill a great de-
ficiency of laborers in every field of induatry, eapecially in
agricultuie and in our minea, as well of iron and coal as of the
[HVciouB metals. While the demand for labor ia much increased
here, tens of thousands of persona, destitute of remunerative
ov Google
460 UPf: AND
occupation, are throDging onr :
emigrate fa} the United Btatee,
sistance can be afiurded them.
the sharp discipline of civil wai
life. 'I'bis noble effort demandj
the attention and support of tin
Injuries, unforeseen by tht
may, in some cases, have beeu
zeoB of foreign countries, both
in the service of the United S
pectB redress from otlier powe
flicted by persons in their eer<
Statee, we must be prepared to
eziadDg judicial tribunals are
special court may be authoriz
cide such claims of the charactc
under treaties and the public
the claims by joint commUsioi
govemmenta, but no definite ai
been received from any.
Id the course of the session
to request yon to provide ind
decrees of restitution have been
by admiralty courts; and in
meut may be acknowledged to
the amount of that liability has
arbitration.
The proper officere of the Ti
required by the law of the Uni
demand a tas upon the inco
country. While such a dema
derogation of public law, or [
between the United States ai
diency of so far modifying the
income of such consuls as are n
derived from the emoluments o:
not dtuated in the United 8ta
consideration.
I make this suggestion u[
ovGoO'^lc
^^I^n'-
ABRAHAM MKCOLN. 461
which ought to be reciprocated, exempts onr, coneali, in
all other countries, from taxation to the extent thus indicated.
The United States, I think, ought not to be exceptionally iUib-
eral to international trade and commerce.
The operations of the Treaaury during the last year have
been successfully conducted. The eoactment by Congress of a
national banking law has proved a valuable support of the
public credit; and the general legislation in relation to loans
has fully answered the expectations of its &voret8. Some
amendments may be required to perfect existing laws, but no
change in their principles or general scope is believed to be
needed.
Since these measures have been in operation, all demands
on the Treasury, includiDg the pay of the Army and Navy,
have been promptly met and fully satisfied. No considerable
body of troops, it is believed, were ever more amply provided,
and more liberally and punctually paid ; and it may be added
that by no people were the burdens incident to a great war
ever more cheerfully borne.
The receipts during the year from all sources, including
loans and balance in the Treasury at its commencement, were
t90I. 125,674.86, and the aggregate disbursements $895,796,-
630.65, leaving a balance on the let of July, 1863, of t5,329,-
044.21. Of the receipts there were derived from customs,
869,059,6^.40; from internal revenue, $37,640,787.95; from
direct tax, «1,485,103,61 ; from lands. «67,617.17; from mis-
cellaneous sources, 13,046,615.35; and from loans, 1776,682,-
361.57; making the aggregate, $901,125,674.86. Of the dis-
bnrsements there were for the civil service, $23,253,922.08 ;
for pensions and Indians, $4,216,52079; for interest on public
debt, $24,729,846.51; for the War Department, $599,298,-
600.83; for the Navy Department, $63,211,105.27; for pay-
ment of funded and temporary debt, $181,086,635.07 ; making
the aggregate, $895,706,630.65, and leaving the balance of
$5,329,044.21. But the payment of funded and temporary
debt, having been made from roonejrs borrowed during the year,
must be regarded as merely nominal payments, and the moneys
borrowed to make them as merely nominal receipts; and their
amount, $181,086,635.07, should therefore be deducted both
ovGoO'^lc
i2 UFE AND TIMES OF
DDi receipts KncI diBbureementB. This beiog done, tbere n
actual receipts, $720,089,039.79, and the actual disburse men ta
'14,709.996.58, leaving the balance as already stated.
The actual receipts and disbursements for the first quarter,
id the estimated receipts and diabunements for the remaining
ree quarters of the current fiscal year, 1864, will be shown in
itail by the report of the Secretary of the Treasury, to which I
vite your attentjon. It is suffident to aay here that it is not
ilieved that actual results wiUexhibita state of the finances lesa
vorable to the country than the estimates of Uiat officer here-
fore submitted ; while it is confidently expected that at the
see of the year both disburaements and debt will be found
>ry considerably less than has been anticipated.
The report of the Secretary of War i« a document of great
tereet It consiste of — . .
1. The military operations of the year, detailed in the report
' the Oeneral-in -Chief.
2. The organization of colored persons into the war service.
3. The exchange of prisoners, fully set fortli in the letter of
eneral Hit«bcock.
4. The operations under the act foreorolling and calling out
e national forces, detailed in the report tS the Provost-Marehal-
eneral.
5. The organization of the invalid corps; and,
6. The operation of the several departments of the Quarter-
aster-General, Commissary-Geneml, I^ymaster-Oeneral, Chief
Engineers, Chief of Ordnance, and Surgeon-Grenera).
It has appeared impossible to make a valuable summary of
is report except such as would be too extended for this place,
id bence I content myself by asking your c^^ful attention to
e report itself.
The dutiea devolving on the naval branch of the service
■ring the year, and Uiroughout the whole of this unhappy
ntest, have been discharged with fidelity and eminent success,
ifl extensive blockade has been constantly increasing in effi-
incy, as the navy has expanded ; yet on so long a line it has
Ikr been impossible to entirely suppress illidC trade. FVom
turns recdved at the Navy Department, it appears that more
an one thousand vessels have been captured since the block-
ov Google
ABBAHAM LINCOLN. _ 463
ade was inrtituted, and that the value of prizes already sent in
for adjudication amounts to over thirteen millions of dollars.
Hie naval force of the United States coniists at this time
of'five hundred and eighty-eight Tessels, completed and in the
conrae of completion, and of these seventj-five are Iron-clad or
armored steameTB. The eTeots of the war give an increased in-
Ureet and importance to the Navy, which will probably extend
beyond the war itself.
The armored veBsels in our Navy, completed and in service,
or which are under contract and approaching completion, are
believed to exceed in number those of any other power. But
while these may be relied upon for harbor defense and ooaat-
service, others of greater strength and capacity will be neceeeary
lor cruising purposes, and to maintain our rightful position oa
the ocean.
Ilie change that has taken place in naval vessels end naval
warfiire noce the introduction of steam as a motive power for
ships of war demands either a corresponding change in some of
our existing navy-yarda, or the eatablishment of new onee, for
the construction and neceesary repair of modem naval vessels.
Ko inconsiderable embarrassment, delay, and public injury have
been experienced trom the want of such Governmental estab-
lishments. The necessity of such a navy-yard, so fiimished, at
some suitable place apon the Atlantic sea-board, has, on repeated
occasions, been brought to the attention of Congress by the
Navy Department, and is again presented in the report of the
Secretary, which accompanies this communication. I think it
my duty to invite yoiur special attention to this subject, and
also to that of establishing a yard and depot for naval purposes
upon one of the Western rivers. A naval force has been created
on those interior waters, and under many disadvantages, within
little more than two yean, exceeding in numbers the whole
naval force of the country at the commencement of the present
Administration. Satisfactory and important as have been the
performances of the heroic men of the Navy at this interesting
period, they are scarcely more wonderful than the success of our
mechanics and artisans in the production of war-vessels which
has created a new form of navid power.
Our country has advantages superior to any other nation tB
ov Google
464 LIFE AND TIMES OF
its neourcee of iroo and timher, witti inezIiauetiUe quantities
of fu«] in tbe immediatA vianity-of both, all available and in
cloee proximity to navigable waters. Without tlie advantage
of public works the reeouroes uf the Nation have been developed
and its power displayed in the conBtmction of a navy of such
magnitude which has, at the veiy period of its creation, rendered
Bignal service to the Union. .
The increase of the number of seamen in the pntdic service,
from seven thousand five hundred men, in tiie spring of 1861,
to about tbirty-four thousand at the present time, has been
accomplished without special legislation, or extraordinary boun-
ties to promote that increase. It has been found, however, tbat
the operation of the draft, with the high bounties paid for army
recruits, b banning to a^ct injurioudy the naval service, and
will, if not corrected, be likely to impair its efficiency, by de-
taching seamen from their proper vocation and inducing them
to enter the army. I therefore respectfiiUy suggest that Con-
gress might aid both the army and naval service by a definite
provision on this subject, which would at the same time be
equitable to the communities more especially interested.
I commend to your consideration the suggestions of the
Secretary of the Navy in regard to the pdicy of fostering and
training seamen, and also the education of officers and engineers
for the naval service. The Naval Academy is rendering ngnal
service in preparing midshipmen for the highly responsible
duties which in after life they will be required to perform. In
order that the country should not be deprived of the proper
quota of educated officers, for which If^al provision has been
made at the Naval School, the vacancies caused by the n^lect
or omisaon to make nominations from tbe States in insurrecUoD
have been filled by the Secretary of the Navy. The school is
now more full and complete than at any former period, and.
in every respect, entitled to tlie &Torable con«deratioa of
Congress.
During the past fiscal year the financial condition of tbe
Post-office Department has been one of increaang prosperity,
and I am gratified in being able to state that the actual postal
revenue has nearly equaled the entire expenditures; tbe latter
amounting to 111,314,206.84, and the former to 111,163,789.69,
:b,GOO'^IC
ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 46
lefiviiig a deficiency of bnt SI60,417.25. In 1860, the yei
immediately precediiig the Rebellion, the deficiency amountt
to «6,656.705.49, the postal receipts of that year being $2,64?
722.19 leas than those of 1863. The decrease sinoe 1860
the annual amount of tnuiaportatioQ has been only about tvent
five per cent, but the annual expenditure on account of tl
BBme has been reduced thirty-five per cent. It is manifee
therefore, that the Post-office Department may become sel
BUBtfuning in a few years, even with the resioration of tl
whole service.
The international conference of postal delegates from tl
principal countries of Europe and America, which was calh
at the su^esdon of the Postmaster-General, met at Paris c
the 11th of May last, and concluded its deliberations on tl
8th of June. The principles established by the conference i
best adapted to facilitate postal intercourse between nation
and as the bass of future postal conventionB, inaugurate a gei
eral syBt«m of uniform intematonal charges, at reduced rat
of postage, and can not fail to produce beneficial results.
I refer you to the report of the Secretary of the Inteno
which is herewith Wd before you, for useful and varied info
mation in relation to the public lands, Indian a^ra, pat«nt
pensions, and other matters of public concern pertaining to th
Department.
The quantity of land disposed of during the last and tl
first quarter of tbe present fiscal years was three million eigl
hundred and forty-one thousand five hundred and forty-nii
acres, of which one hundred and axty-one thousand nine hui
dred and eleven acres were sold for cash, one million four hui
dred and fifty-six thousand five hundred and fourteen acn
were taken up under the HomeBtead Law, and the residue d!
poeed of under laws granting lands fnr military bounties, f<
railroad and other purposes. It also appears that the sale o
the public lands is largely on the increase.
It has long been a cherished opinion of some of our wisei
statesmen that the people of the United States had i high(
and more enduring interest in the early settlement and sul
stantial cultivation of the public lands than in the amount o
direct revenue to be derived from the sale of them. This opinio
30-q
ov Google
466 LIFE AND TIMES OF
hae had a cantroUiDg influence in sliopitig legielatioD xipon tlie
subject of our national domain. . I may cite, aa evidence of thie,
the liberal measures ailopt«d io reference to actunl settlers ; th«
grant to the States of the overflowed lands within their limita
in order to their being reclaimed and rendered fit for cultiva-
tion ; the grants to railway companies of alternate sections of
land upon the contemplated lines of their roads which, when
completed, will so largely multiply the facilities for reaching
our distant ponesEJona. This policy lias received its most signal
and beneficent illustration in the recent enactment granting
homesteflds to actual settlers. Sinoe the first day of Janoary
last the beforementioned quantity of one million four hnndred
and fifty-six thousand five hundred and fourteen acres of land
have been taken up under Its provisions. This fact and the
amount of sales, furnish gratifying evidence of increasing set-
tlement upon the public lands, notwithstanding the great
struggle in which the energies of the Nation have been engaged,
and which has required so large a withdrawal of our citisena
from their accustomed pursuita. I cordially concur in the
recommendation of the Becretary of the Interior, suggesting a
modification of the act in fitvor of those engaged in the military
and naval service of the United States. I doubt not that Con-
gress will cheerfully adopt sncfa measures aa will, without
essentially changing the general features of the system, secure,
to the greatest proctjcable extent, its benefits to those who
have left their homes in the defease of the oountiy in this
arduous crisis.
I invite your attention to the vievs of the Secretary as tu
the propriety of raising, by appropriate legislati<m, a revenue
from the mineral lands of the United States.
The measures provided at your last session for the removal
of certain Indian tribes have been carried into efiecl. Sundry
treaties have been negotiated, which will, in due time, be sub-
mitted for the ConsUtutional action of the Senate. They con-
tain stipulations for extinguishing the possessory rights of the
Indians to large and valuable tracts of land. It is hoped that
the efTect of these treaties will result in the establislunent of
permanent friendly relations with such of these tribes as have
been brought into frequent and bloody collision with our out-
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ABRAHAM UNOOIK. 467
lying Bettlemento and emigrants. Sound policy and our impera-
tive duty to theae wards of the Goverument demand our anxious
and cooetaDt attention to their material well-beiDg, to their
pn^;resB in the arts of civilizadon, and, above all, to that moral
training which, nuder the bleBsing of Divine Providence, will
ronfer upon them the elevated and sanctifying influences, the
hopea and consolations of the Christian ftith.
I suggested, in my last annual meseage, the propriety of
remodeling our Indian system. Subsequent events have sati»-
fied me of iis necessity. The details set forth in the report of
the Secretary evibce the ui^ent need for immediate legislative
action.
I commend the benevolent institutions established or patrooT
ized by the Government in this District to your generous and
fuetering care.
The attention of Congress, during the last session, was en-
gaged, to some extent, with a proposition for enlai^ng the
water communication between the Misdasippi Itiver and the
uorth-eastem sea-board, which proposition, hofvever, failed for'
the time. Since then, upon a call of the gr^tsst respectability,
a convention has been held at Chicago upon the same subject,
a summary of whose views is contained in a memorial addr^sed
to the President and Congress, and which I now have Oie honor
to lay before you. That this interest .is one which, erelong,
will force its own way, I do not entertain a doubt, while it Is
submitted entirely to your wisdom as to what can be done now.
Augmented interest b given to this subject by liie actual com-
mencement of the work on the Pacific Bulroad, under ausfuces
so favorable to rapid pn^rese and completion. The enlarged
navigation becomes a palpable need to the great road.
I transmit the second annual report of the Commissioner
of the Department of Agriculture, asking your attention to the
developments in that vital interest of the Nation.
M^en Congress assembled a year ago the war had already
lasted nearly twenty months, and there had been many conflicts
on both land and sea with varying results. The Rebellion bad
been pressed back into reduced limits; yet the tone of public
feeling and opinion, at home and abroad, was not satisfactory.
With other ngns, the popular elections, then just past, indicated
=0 -by Google
468 LIFE AND TIBIE8 OF
UDeflsinesB among ouraelves, nliile amid much that was cold and
meDndng, the kindest wordg coming from Europe were ottered
in accents of pity, that we were too blind to surrender a hope-
less cause. Our commerce was sufl^riug greatly by a few armed
Teasels built upon and furnished from foreign shores, and we
were threatened with such additions from tbe same quarter as
would sweep our trade from ttie sea and raise our blockade.
We had failed to elicit from European goveraments anything
hopeful upon this subject. The prelimtuary EmandpatioD
Prodamation, issued in September, was runiiing its assigned
period to the beginning of the new year. A month later the
final proclamation came, including the announcement that
colored men of suitable condition would be received into the
war-service. The policy of emancipation, and of employing
black soldiers, gave to the future a new aspect, about which
hope, and fear, and doubt contended in uncertain conflict
According to our political system, as a matter of civil admia-
istration, the General Giovemment had no lawful power to effect
emancipatjon in any State, and for a long time it bad been
hoped that the Rebellion could be suppreesed without resorting
to it as a military measure. It was all the while deemed pos-
sible that the necessity for it might come, and that, if it should,
the crisis of the contest would then be presebted. It caroe,
and, as was anticipated, it was followed by dark and doubtful
days. Eleven months having now passed, we are permitted to
take another view. The rebel borders are pressed still further
back, and, by the complete opening of the Missisnppi, the
country dominated by the Bebellion is divided into diBtiuct
parts, with no practical communication between them. Ten-
nessee and Arkansas have been Gubetautially cleared of insni^ent
control, and influential citizens in each, owners of slaves and
advocates of slavery at the beginning of the Rebellion, now de-
dare openly for emandpation in their respective States. Of
t^ose States not included in the Emancipation Proclamation,
Maryland and Missouri, neither of which three years ago would
tolerate any restraint upon the extension of slavery into new
Territories, only dispute now as to tbe best mode of removing it
within their own limits.
Of those who were slaves at the beginning of the Rebellioo,
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i
ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 409
fbll one hundred thousand are now in the United States mili-
tary service, about one-half of which number actually bear
arms in the nuits ; thus giving tbe double advantage of lakiag
so much labor from the meurgent cause, and Buppljing the
places which otherwise must be filled with so many wliite men.
60 fiir as teflted, it is difficult to say they are not as good sol-
diers as any. No servile insurrection, or tendency U> violence
or cruelty, has marked tha measures uf emancipation and arm-
ing the blacks. I'bese measures have been much discussed in
foreign countries, and contemporary with such discussion the
tone of public sentiment there is much improved. At home
the same measures have been fully discussed, supported, criti-
cised, and denounced, add the annual elections i'uUowing are
highly encouraging to those whose official duty it is to bear the
country tlirough this great trial. Thus we have the new reck-
oning. . The crisis which threatened to divide the friends of the
Union is past
Looking now to the present and future, and with reference
to a resnmpdon of theoatioDal authority within the States wherein
diat authority has been suspended, I have thought fit to issue a
proclamation, a copy of which is herewith transmitt«d. On
examination of this proclamation it will appear, as is believed,
that nothing will be attempted beyond what is amply justified
by the Constitntian. True, the form of an oath is given, but
no man is coerced to take it. The man is only promised a
pardon in case he voluntarily takes the oath. The Constitution
authorizes the Executive to grant or withhold the pardon at
his own absolute discretion ; and this includes the power to
grant on terms, as is fully eetabliehed by judicial and other
authorities.
It is also inx)fiered that if, in any of the States named, a
State goverament shall be, in the mode prescribed, set up, such
government shall be recognized and guaranteed by the United
States, and that under it the State shall, on Constitutional con-
ditions, be protected against invasion and domestic violence.
The Constitutional obligation of the United States to guarantee
to every State in the Union a republican form of government, •
and to protect the State, in the cases stated, is explidt aod full.
Bat why lender Uie benefits of this provision only to a State
ovGoO'^lc
470 UFE AKD TIMES OF
government set up in this particular vay f Tbia sectioD of the
Constitution contemplates a case nherdn tlie element within a
State, favorable to republican goverament, in the Union, may
be too feeble for an opposite and hostile element external to or
even withiu the State ; and such are precisely the cases with
which WQ are now dealing.
An attempt to guarantee and protect a revived State gov-
ernment, constructed in whole, or in preponderatjog part, from
the Tcrj element against whose hostility and violence it is to
be protected, is simply absurd. There must be a test by which
to separate the opposing elements so as to build only from the
sound ; and that test is a sufficiently liberal one which accepts
as sound whoever will make a sworn recantation of his formw
unsoundness.
But if it be proper to require, as a test of admission to ^e
political body, an oath of allegiance to the Constitution of the
United States, and to the Union under it, why also to the laws
and proclamatjons in regard to slavery f Those laws and proc-
lamations were enacted and put forth for the purpose of aiding
in the suppression of the Rebellion. To give them thnr fullest
effect, there bad to be a pledge for their maintenance. In my
judgment they have aided, and will further aid, the cause for
which they were intended. To now abandon them would be
not only to relinquish a lever of power, but would also be a
cruel and astounding breach of faith. I may add at this point,
that while I remain in my present position I shall not attempt
to retract or modify the Emancipation Prochimation ; nor shall
I return to slavery any person who is fVee by the terms of that
Proclamation, or by any of the acts of Congress. For these
and other reaaons it is thought best that support of these meas>
ures shall be included in the oath ; and it is believed the Ex-
ecutive may lawfully claim it in return for pardon and restora-
tion of forfeited rights, which he has clear Constitutional powv
to withhold altogetber, or grant upon the terms which he shall
deem wisest for the public interest. It should be observed,
also, that this part of the oath is subject to the modifying and
abrogatin'g power of legislation and supreme judicial decmon.
The proposed acquiescence of the national Executive in any
reasonable temporary State arrangement for the freed people is
ovGoO'^lc
ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 471
made with the view of poaaibly modifying the oonfusion and
destitution vhidi must, at beat, attend all claaeeB by a total
reTolntion of labor throughout vhole States. It is hoped tliat
the already deeply afflicted people in those States may be sonie-
nhat more ready to give up ^e cause of their affliction, if, to
this extent, this vital matter be left to tbemselves ; irhile no
power of the national Executive to prevent an abuse is abridged
by the proposition.
"Hhe suggestion in the Proclamation as to maintainiug the po-
litical frame-work of the States on what is called reconstruction,
is made in the' hope that it may do good without danger of
harm. It will save labor, and avoid great confu^on.
But why any proclamation now upon the subject? Thia
question is beset with the conSicting views that the step might
be delayed too long or be taken too soon. In some States the
elements for resumption seem ready for action, but remain in-
active, apparently for want of a rallying point — a plan of
action. Why shall A adopt the plan of B, rather than B that
of A? And if A and B should agree, how can they know but
that the General Gh)vemment here will reject\heir plan ? By
the Proclamation a plan is presented which may be accepted
by them as a rallying point, and which they are assured in ad-
vance will not be rejected here. Tlus may bring tbem to act
sooner than they otherwise wo'uid.
The objection to a premature presentation of a plan by the
national Executive connsts in the danger of committals on
points which could be more safely left to further developments.
Care has been taken to so shape the document as to avoid em-
barrassments from this source. Saying that, on certain ternis,
certain claaees will be pardoned, with rights restored, it is not
said that other classes, or other terms, will never be included.
Saying that reconstruction will be accepted if presented in a
specified way, it is not said it will never be accepted in any
other way.
The movements, by State action, for emancipation in sev-
eral of the States not included in the Emancipation Proclama-
tion, are matters of profound giatulation. And while I do not
repeat in detail what I have heretofore bo earnestly urged upon
this subject, my general views and feelings remain unchanged;
ovGoo'^lc
472 UFE AND TIUEB OF
utd I trust that Coogreae will omit no fiiir opportunity of aid-
ing these important steps to a great oonsummation.
In the midat of otber cares, however important, ve must
not lose sight of the fact that the war power is stall our main
reliance. To that power alone we can look, yet for a time, to
give confidence to the poople in the coatest«d regtoDB, that the
insurgent power will not again overrun them. Until th&t con-
fidence shall be established, little can be done anywhere for what
is called reconstruction. Hence our chiefeat care must still be
directed to the army and navy, who have thus far borne their
harder part so nobly and well. And it may be esteemed fortu-
nate that in girbg the greatest efficiency to these iodispensable
arms, we do aUo honorably recognise the gallant men, from
commander to sentinel, who compose them, and to whom, more
than to others, the world must stand indebted for the home of
freedom disenthralled, regenerated, enlarged, and perpetuated.
On the day this message was sent to Congress
the President ^6ued an Amnesty Proclamation, which
he foutid necessary to explain by another foar
months later. The following are these proclama^
tions, which served to show the continued and deter-
mined good disposition of the Administration toward
the insurgents, however worthless they were other-
wise : —
PROCLAMATION OF AMNESTY.
Whebgas, In and by the Constitution of the United States,
it is provided that the President " shall have power to grant
reprieves and pardons for offenses against the United States,
except in cBsee of impeachment;" and
Whbrrab, a rebellion now exists whereby the loyal State
governments of several States have for a long time been sub-
verted, and many persons have committed and are now guilty
of treason against the Unit«d States; and
Whereas, With reference to said rebellion and treason,
lane have been enacted by CongreaB declaring forfeitures and
confiscation of property and liberaUoo of slaves, all upon terms
ovGoO'^lc
ABRAHAM LINCOLN. . 473
had coDditioDS therein stated, and also declaring that the Presi-
dent was thereby authorized at any time thereafter, by procla-
m&don, to extend to persouB who may have participated in the
exifltiDg rebellioD, in any State or part thereof, pardon and
amnesty, with such exceptions and at such times and on each
cendiUona as he may deem expedient for the public welfare ; and
Whereas, The GongresMonal declaration for limited and
conditional pardon accords with well established judicial ezpod-
tion of the pardoning power ; and
Whesbas, With reference to said rebellion, the President
of the United States has isened several proclamations, with pro-
visions in regard to the liboralion of slaves; and
Whbbeas, It is now desired by some persons heretofore en-
gaged in said rebellion to resume their allegiance to the United
States, and to reinaugurate loyal State governments within and
for th«r respective States :
Therefore, I, Abraham Lincoln, President of the United
StAtes, do proclaim, declare, and make known to all persons
who have directly, or by implicatioD, participBt«d in the existing
rebellion, except as bereinailer excepted, that a full pardon is
hereby granted to them and each of them, with restoration of aU
rights of property, except as to slaves, and in property cases
where right of third parlies shall have intervened, and upon the
condition that every such person shall take and sulMcribe an
oath, and thenceforward keep and maintain said oath inviolate ;
and which oath shall be regwtered for permanent preservation,
md shall be of the tenor and efiect following, to wit:
"I, , do solemnly swear, in presence of Al-
mighty God, that I will henceforth faithfully support, protect,
and defend the Constitution of the United States, and the Union
' of the States thereunder; and that I will, in like manner, abide
by and &ithfu|]y support all Acts of Congress paeaed dunng
t|ie existing rebellion with reference to slaves, so long and so
far as not repealed, modified, or held void by Congress, or by
de(»uon of the Supreme Court ; and that I will, in like manner,
abide by and faithfully support all proolamatioua of the Presi-
dent made during the existing rebellion having reference to
slaves, so long and so far as not modified or declared void by
decision of the Supreme Court. So help me God."
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474 LIFE AND TIMES OF
The peisonB excepted from the beoefits of the faregoiog pro-
yinoDS are all who are, or shall have beeo, civil or diplomatic
officATB or agents of the so-called Confederate GoveromeBt ; all
vbo have left judicial staUuns under the United Statea to aid
the rebellion; all who are, or shall have been, military or
naval officers of sfud Bo-called Confederate Qovemmoit above
the ntnb of colonel in the army, or of lieutenant in the navy;
all who left seats in the United States Congress to aid the re-
bellion ; all who resigned eommieuons in the army or navy of
the United States, and afterwards luded the rebellion ; and all
who have eugl^ed in any way in treating colored persons, or
white persons in charge of such, otherwise than lawfully as
prisoners of war, and which persons may have beeu found in
the United Btatee service as soldiers, seamen, or in any other
capacity.
And I do further proclEum, declare, and make known that
whenever in any of the States of Arkansas, Texas, Louisiana,
Mississippi, Tennessee, Alabama, Georgia, Virginia, Florida,
South Carolina, and North Carolina, a number of pereooa, not
less than one-tenth in number of the voles cast in such State at
the Presidential election of the year of our Lord one thousand -
eight hundred and sixty, each having taken the oath aforesaid
and not having since violated it, and being a qualified voter by
the election law of the State existing immediately before the so-
called Act of Secession, and excluding all others, shall re-estab-
lish a State government which shall be republican, and in
nowise contravening said oath, such shall be recognized as the
true government of the State, and the State shall receive there-
under the benefits of the ConstJtulioDal provision which declares
that "the United States shall guaranty to every Bute in this
Union a republican form of government, and shall protect each
of them against invanon ; and, on application of the Legislature,
or the Executive (when the I^egislature can not be convened),
against domestic violence."
And I do further procUim, declare, and make known that
any provision which may he adopted by such Stat« government
in relation to the freed people of such State, which shall recog-
nize and declare their permanent freedom, provide for their
education, and which may yet be con«stent, as a temporary
ov Google . j
J
ABRAHAM UNCOLN. 476
uraDgement, iritb their present condition, as a laboring, land*
lees, and hoiuelese c]ase, will not be objected to by the national
Executive. And it is suggested as not improper, that, in con-
Mnioting a loyal State giivernment in any State, the name of
the State, the txiUDdary, the subdiviuoiu, the constitution, and
tbe general code of laws, as before the rebellion, be tnaiutained,
subject only to tKe modifications made necessary by the condi-
tions hereinbefore stated, and such others, if any, not contra-
veniog said conditions, and which may be deemed expedient by
those framing the new State government.
To avoid misundera tan ding, it may be proper 1j) say that
this proclamation, so iar as it relates to State governmentg, has
no reference to States wherein loyal State govemmente have all
the while been in^nlained. And for the same reason, it may
be proper to further say, that whether membera sent to Con- ,
gress from any State shall be admitted t« seals Constitutionally, '
rests exclusively with the respective Houses, and not to any
extent with tbe Executive. And still further, tha^ this Procla-
mation is intended to present the people of the States wherein
the national authority has been suspended, and loyal State gov-
ernments have been subverted, a mode in and by which the na-
tional and loyal State governments may be re-established within
Hud States, or in any of them ; and while the mode presented
is the best the Executive can suggest, with hu present impres-
eioDs, it must not be understood that no other poeuble mode
would be a<:ceptable.
Given under my hand, at the City of Washington, the
eighth day of December, A. D. one thousand eight
hundred and sixty-three, and of the ludependenoe of
the United States of America the eighty -eighth.
By the President : Abraham Luicoln.
William H. Sbwahd, Secretary ol State.
AMNESTY DEFINED.
Wherbas, It has become necessary to define the oases in
which insurgent enemies are entitled to the benefits of the Proc-
lamation of the Pre«dent of the United States, which was nmde
on the 8th day of December, 1863, and the manner in which
they shall proceed to avail themselves of tboee benefits ; and
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UFE AND TIMES OF
^HERKAB, The objects of that ProclamataOD were to suppren
iusurrectioD, and to restore the BUthority of the United
b; and
^'HEB£A8, The amnesty therein provided by the President
iffered with reference to these objects alone :
Ton, therefore, I, Abraham Lincoln, President of the
ed States, do hereby proclaim and declare that the said
amation does not apply to the cases of persons who, at the
when they seek to obtain the benefits thereof by taking
ath thereby prescribed, are in military, naval, or civil con-
leot or custody, or under bonds or on parole of the civil,
iry, or naval authorities, or agents of the United States as
Qers of war, or persons detained for offenses of any kind,
r before or aAer conviction ; and that, on the contrary, it
apply only to persons who, being yet at large and fice
any arrest, confinement, or duress, shall voluatarily come
ird and take the eaii oath with the purpose of restoring
I and estaUishing the national authority,
risoners excluded from the amnesty offered in the said
amation may apply to the President for clemency, like
ther offenders, and their application will receive due con-
ition.
do further declare and proclaim that tlie oath prescribed
e aforesaid Proclamation of the 8th of December, 1863,
be taken and subscribed to before any commissioned
r, civil, military, or naval, in the service of the United
s, or any civil or military officer of a State or Territory,
3 insurrection, who by the law thereof may be qualified for
nistering oaths.
.11 officers who receive such oaths are hereby authorized to
certificates thereon to the persons respectively by whom
are made. And such officers are hereby required to trans-
be original records of snch oaths at as early a day as may
mvenient to the Department of State, where they will be
lited and remain in the archives of the Government,
he Secretary of State will keep a register thereof, and will,
^plication in proper cases, issue certificates of such recoid*
e customary form of such certificates.
ovGoo'^lc
ABRAHAM UNCOLN. 477
Id testimODj whereof, I have hereunto set my hand, and
caused the eealof the United Btates to be affixed.
Done at the City of Washington, the 26th day of March, id
the year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and
sixty-four, and of the Independence of the United
States the eighty-eighth. Abhah&u Lincoui.
By the Preadent :
WiLUAM H. Sbward, Secretary of Stat«,
In the great mass of acts passed during this ses-
sion, the most noticeable were those amending and
perfecting the Enrollment and Draft Act further au-
thorizing the President to call out troops and en-
large the army and navy; to revive the office of
Lieutenant-General, which the President bestowed
upon General U. S. Grant; to enable Nevada, Colo-
rado, and Nebraska to form State governments, and
■organizing a temporary government for Montana; to
establish the present postal money order system,
which went into effect in the fall of 1864 ; to repeal
the " Fugitive Slave Law ;" and a vast number of
resolutions of thanks to generals, naval officers, and
soldiers who had distinguished themselves, armies
that bad rendered noble service, and a gold medal
was voted to General Grant.
A "reconstruction" act was passed looking to the
organization of the rebel States, but this was not
signed by the President. The bill provided,
1. For the appointment of a provisional governor
of each rebel State.
2. That the provisional governor, as soon as mil-
itary resistance to the Government should cease,
should cause the people to be enrolled, and if those
ov Google
478 LIFE AND TIMIB OF
taking the oath of loyalty should be in the nmjoirity,
a convention should be held for re-establishing the
State government.
3. The number of delegates to the convention
was fixed, and the provisionnl governor authorized
to designate the voters, rejecting all who bad fought
against the country whether biking the oath or not.
4. That the delegates elected should assemble in
convention with the provisional governor as chair-
man, and take the oath of submission to the Govern-
ment, and then provide for incorporating in the State
constitution, that no man who had held any high
office under the rebel authorities should be eligible
to the Legislature or office of governor, that there
should be no more slavery forever, and that all debts
made under the Rebellion should be repudiated.
6. That the convention should, with these pro-
visions, reconstruct the coostiCiition, and when sub-
mitted to the -people, if the result was fnvorable, the
President should declare the government of the
State re-established.
6. That if the convention failed to conform to
this plan, the provisional governor should disperse it,
and some time when the indications were more favor-
able, cause another election, and try it again.
7. That until such reorganization should be ef-
fected, the provisional governor should assess and
collect the taxes.
8. That there should be no more slavery, and if
any should be claimed as slaves they should be dis-
charged by habaeti corpus.
ovGoO'^lc
ABRAHAM liSCOLN. 479
9. That any person who should withhold liberty
from one of these declared free should be fined and
imprisoned.
10. That any person who should after the pas-
sage of the bill hold a civil office, or any military
offiee above the rank of a colonel, under the Rebell-
ion, should not be a citizen of the United States.
The President had alread^i committed himself to
support a plan not substantially different in Arkansas
and Louisiana, and had in his Proclamation of Amnesty
indicated the course he favored. Still he approved
most of this bill, and that it might not fail to accom-
plish any good for which it was designed, he issued
this prochtmation and to it appended the entire bill : —
"Whereas, At the late sestion, CoDgress pflseed e bill 'to
goarantee to certaiu Btates, whose goverameiita have been
usurped or overtbrowD, a republican form of government,' a
cop)r nf which is hereunto annexed ; and
" Whereas, The said bill was presented to the President
of the United States for his approval less than one hour before
the «tn« die adjournment of stud session, and was not signed by
bim ; and
"Whereas, The said bill contains, among other things, a
plan for restoring the States in rebdlion to their proper prac-
tical relation in the Union, which plan expresses the sense of
Congress upon that subject, and which plan it is now thought
fit to lay before the people for their consideration :
"Now, therefore, I, Abraham Lincoln, PresiJent of tlie
United States, do proclaim, declare, and make known, that,
while I am (as I was in December last, when hy proclamation
I propounded a plan for restoration) unprepared, by a formal
approval of this bill, to be inflexibly committed to any single
plan of restoration ; and, while I am also unprepared to declare
that the Free State constitutions and goveraments already
ovGoO'^lc
480 LIFE AND TIMES OF
adopted nnd ioitalled in Arkansiu and Louisiana Bhall be set
aside and held for nought, thereby repelling and discouraging
the lojal citizens who have eet up the same U to further effort,
or to declare a Constitutional competeocj in Congress to abolish
slavery in Btates, but am at the same time sincerely hoping
and expecting that a ConstitutJonal amendment abolishing
slavery throughout the nation may be adopted, nevertheless I
am fully satisfied with the system for restoration contained in
the bill as one very proper plan for the loyal people of any
State choodng to adopt it, and I am, and at all timea shall
be, prepared to give the Executive aid and assistance to any
such people, so soon as the military reustance to the United
States shall have been suppressed in any such State, and the
people thereof shall have sufficiently returned to their obedience
to the Constitution and laws of the United States, in which
cases military govemors vill be appointed, with directions to
proceed according to the bill.
" In testimony whereof, I have hereunto set my hand, and
caused the seal of the United States to be afiixed.
" Done at the City of Washington, this eighth day of July,
in the year of our Lord, one thousand eight hundred
and sixty-four, and of the Independence of the United
States of America the eighty-ninth.
"By the Prendent: Abbaham Lincoln.
"WiLUAH H. SbWabd, Secretary of State."
This Proclamation, and Mr. Lincoln's course as to
the Reconstruction BUI, paased by a large majority in
both Houses, were mistakes in the light of subse-
quent events. They were also mistakes, perhaps, in
reference to his own powers in the face of a Congress
loyal by an overwhelming majority. Yet, under the
circumstances, these mistakes were not an adequate
apology for the appearance of a paper in very harsh,
intemperate, and exaggerated terms signed by B. F.
Wade and Henry Winter Davis condemning and
ovGoO'^lc
ABRAHAM UNCOLN. 481
oriticising the President's course in the whole mat-
ter. These men were chairmen of the respective
committees io the two Houses having in hand the
parts of the President's Message relating to recon-
struction, and Mr. Davis presented the bill which
the President neglected. to sign.' The motive which
seemed to move their attack on Mr. Lincoln was
based upon the part they had taken in the construc-
tion of the bill. At all events, the harm that Mr.
Lincoln had done to his own eiiuse, was greatly aug-
mented by their appeal to the people. The " Opposi-
tion" made all they could of this affair, but when
Hovember came, the result at the polls told plainly
enough in whom the neople placed confidence.
Towards the close of December, 1861, Mr. Howe,
of Wisconsin, introduced in the Senate a bill for the
repeal of the " Fugitive Slave Act " of 1850. This
bill was referred to the Judiciary Committee and
there lay until the spring of 1863. David Wilmot
and Henry Wilson also made efforts in 1862 to bring
about some legislation for the destruction of this ob-
noxious Act ; and a number of petitions kept the
matter before Congress, but nothing wiia done. Soon
after the session opened in 1863, Thaddeiis Stevens,
of Pennsylvania, offered a bill for the repeal of the
Fugitive Slave Act of 1793 and the Amendatory
Act of 1860. Mr. Ashley, of Ohio, and George W.
Julian, of Indiana, also presented bills for the same
purpose. In January, 1864, Charles Sumner in the
Senate moved the appointment of a committee of
seven to consider nil matters pertaining to slavery
3l-<i
ovGoO'^lc
482 UFE AND TIHB8 OF
and the treatmeat of slaves. Of the committee, five
were strong aati-slavery men. From this committee,
late in February, Mr. Sumner introduced a bill for
the repeal of the Fugitive Slave Act, and with it an
exhaustive report. Garlile, of West Virginia, and
the Democrat, Buckalew, of Pennsylvania, as the
minority of the committee of seven, also made a
report against the miijority bill. After a long, and
to some extent, foolish wrangle, Mr. Sumner's bill
WHS laid on the table and not taken up. Early in
June Daniel Morris, of New York, iu the House
introduced "A bill to repeal the Fugitive Slave Act
of 1850, and nil acts, and parts of acts, for the ren-
dition of fugitive slaves." On the 13th of the same
month this bill was passed by a vote of eighty-two
to fifty-seven. A week later through Mr. Sumner
this bill was brought to the consideration of the
Senate, and on the 23d was p^sed by twenty-seven
yeas against twelve nays. And thus passed away
this troublesome law, which had been virtually dead
since the fall of Sumter, like everything else belong-
ing to slavery; and all this turmoil about it now did
no more than to aid in the irrevocable establishment
of the decree which had gone forth iu the Emancipa-
tion Proclamation.
ovGoO'^lc
ipill.u- -
ABRAHAM UNCOLN.
CHAPTBR XX.
WAR OF THE REBELLION— MR. LINCOLN'S BURDENS—
HIS SPEECH AT GETTYSBURG-^ MEDDLESOME HORACE
GREELEY'S DOUBTFUL CONDUCT— PSEU DO ATTEMFrs
AT NEGOTIATION.
BEYOND what may be termed his legitimate
official duties the demands made upon the Pres-
ident were onerous and trying. Few who sought
him were ever turned away. Without a Tiist degree
of sympathy for sufferings linble to befall all, and
which should be borne without publicity, and little
or' DO respect for the needless, officious, or imperti-
nent efforts of men to be seen and heard, he felt
it his duty to care for all, however laborious the
task. It was his way of being President. What
he considered it his duty to do, he did not in-
trust to another. It was expected of him, and he
did it.
Mr. Lincoln was largely imbued with the feeling
tha the could do better than others what he had to do.
He had carried this feeling with him from the times
of his first physical conquests at Gentry ville and New
Saiem. And when it came to an argument or a de-
fense he never forgot his battles with Judge Douglas.
While deferring so little, and yet so much, to- the
opinions and wants of others, he re-examined his
ov Google
[ LIFE AND TIMES OF
tives and acts at every apparent adverse decision
the people.
When Horace Greeley, who gave Mr. Lincoln
li.ttle trouble, wrote his impertinent letter, under
e of August 19, 1862, he was greatly surprised
receive an answer. While he went oo the com-
n error that it was proper and to be expected
t every man who wanted to do so should attack,
'ise, or abuse a President, he did not think Mr.
icoln would depart from the standard of silent
nity prescribed for Presidents. Thus it was that
. Lincoln was found writing carefully worded and
ughtful letters to the Governor of New York about
draft riots, and to Fernando Wocd about his in-
ious fabrications, schemes, or something, concern-
peace ; long, carefully prepared, and caustic lettera
:he Copperheads of New York and Ohio ; volumi-
is and meaty letters to the factionists in Missouri;
ers to Churches and officious, consequential, and
hing preachers; letters to political quacks and
emers; letters to military adventurers and self-
moters; to scores of fault-finders, and hundreds
earnest and sham eulogists and fliitterers; to the
mstructionists in Louisiana and Arkansas ; to
ik-kneed Union men in Kentucky; letters to the
orking-men" of Manchester and London, England;
)ng letter to the "working-men" of New York,
using and pampering them by accepting a foolishly
ffered membership in their society; and so on to
lost endless extent; speeches to soldiers who must
Father Abraham; little speeches at sanitary fairs,
ov Google
ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 486
in Wnshington, Baltiinore, nnd Phitade]))liia; and
speeches and letters in place and out of place. There
was no rest for Lincoln. The burdens of the Nation
he bore, and whea the picture of the skJn rose before
him, and the thousands of appeals for the maimed,
the suffering, and the needy were daily presented to
him, it was no wonder that he should exclaim : " I
shall never be glad again."
One of the most interesting of all these letters
written by Mr. Lincoln is the following, which suffi-
ciently explains itself: —
" Etecdtivb Makbion, WxanrKOTON, 1
" December 23, 1B63. /
"I have just looked over a petition signed by some
three dozen citizens of St. Louis, and their accompanying
letters, one by yourself, one by a Mr. Nathan Ranney, and
one by a Mr. John D. Coalter, the whole relating to the
Rev. Dr. McPheetera. The petition prays, in the name of
justice and mercy, that I will restore Dr. McFbeetere to
all his ecclesiastical rights.
"This gives no intimation as to what ecclesiastical
rights are withdrawn. Your letter states that Provost
Marshal Dick, about a year ago, ordered the arrest of Dr.
McPheeters, pastor of the Vine Street Church, prohibited
him from officiatiog, and placed the management of aSairs
of the Church out of the control of the chosen trustees;
and, near the close, you state that a certain course ' would
insure his release.' Mr. Ranney's letter says: 'Dr. Samuel
McPheeters is enjoying all the rights of a civilian, but can
not preach .the gospel !' Mr. Coalter, in bis letter, asks :
' Is it not a strange illustration of the condition of things,
that the question who shall be allowed to preach in a
church in St. Iiouis shall be decided by the President of
the United States?'
ov Google
486 LIFE AND TIMES OF
"Now, all thiB sounds very strangely; and, withal, a
little as if yoa gentlemeD making the application do not
understand the case alike — one affirming that this Doctor
is enjoying all the rights of a civilian, and another point-
ing out to me what will secure his release! On the 2d of
January last I wrote to General Curtis in relation to Mr.
Dick's order upon Dr. McFheeters; and, as X suppose the
Doctor ia enjoying all the rights of a civilian, I only quote
that part of my letter which relates to the Church. It
was aa follows: 'But I must add that the United States
Government must not, as by this order, undertake to run
the Churches. When an individual, in a Church or out
of it, becomes dangerous to the public interest, he must
be checked ; but the Churches, as such, must take care of
themselves. It will not do for the United States to
appoint trustees, supervisors, or other agents for the
Churches.*
" This letter going to General Curtis, then in command,
I supposed, of conrae, it was obeyed, especially as I heard
no further complaint from Dr. Mc. or his friends for nearly
an entire year. I have never interfered, nor thought of
interfering, as to who shall or shall not preach in any
Church; nor have I knowingly or believingly tolerated
any one else to interfere by my authority. If any one is
so interfering by color of my authority, I would like to
have it specially made known to me.
" If, after all, what is now sought is to have me put
Dr. Mc. back over the beads of a majority of his own
congregation, that, too, will be declined. I will not have
control of any Church or any side. A. LlNCOLSr."
On the 19th of November, 1863, a great concourse
of loyal people assembled at Gettysburg* to eugago
in the ceremony of setting aside, as a sacred spot on
the bosom of " mother earth," the ground containing
the mortal remains of the loyal soldiers who bad
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nj^v^
ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 487
fallen in the great battle there. Among them were
the President and his Cabinet. Edward Everett was
the orator of the occasion, but his polished speech
did not satisfy the demand of the moment. The
eyes of the vast assembly were upon the weary
President. After leaving Washington he had written
a little speech, and this he now stood forward, with
bowed form, and pronounced impressively: —
"Fourscore and seven years ago oar fathers brought
forth upon this continent a new Nation, conceived in lib-
erty, and dedicated to the proposition that all men are
created equal. Now we are engaged in a great civil war,
testing whether that Nation, or any nation so conceived
and so dedicated, can long endure. We are met on a
great battle-field of that war. We are met to dedicate a
portion of it as the final resting-place of those who here
gave their lives that that Nation might live. It is alto-
gether fitting and proper that we should do this.
" But, in a larger sense, we can not dedicate, we can
not consecrate, we can not hallow this ground. The brave
men, living and dead, who struggled here, have consecrated
it fiir above our power to add or detract. The world wilt
little note, nor long remember, what we say here, but it
can never forget what they did here. It is for us, the
living, rather, to be dedicated here to the unfinished work
that they have thus far so nobly carried on. It is rather
for as to be here dedicated to the great task remaining
before us; that from these honored dead we take increased
devotion to the cause for which they here gave the last
full measure of devotion; that we here highly resolve that
the dead shall not have died in vain ; that the Nation
shall, under God, have a new birth of freedom, and that
the Qovernment of the people, by the people, and for the
people, shall not perish from the earth."
ov Google
ffmm^
488 LIFE AND HHES OF
This simple and beautiful speech touched the
Bympathetic chord, and partly from its own merit and
partly from the aad end of the strange and intereeU
ing man who uttered it, it will live in the literary
history of this country when the lofty periods of the
Massachusetts scholar and orator shall be lost.
Two events may now be described, which, although
■ coming under the head of political trickery, form a
link in the story of the times. Horace Oreeley, one
of the poorest judges of men and things in the world,
and yet who had an insatiable itching to put his nose
or finger in everything going on, a fact which every-
body knew, early in July, 1864, received a letter
from a rebel in Canadn, leading him to the belief
that authorized agents from Jefferson Davis were
awaiting to proceed to Washington to negotiate for
peace. Mr. Oreeley had taken up the utterly base-
less notion that this was the way to reach peace, and
that the war should be stopped, and for some months
he had been blundering about in "The Tribune," and
otherwise, in vain to find a clew.
On the 7th of July he wrote the President a long
letter, inclosing the one he had received from Canada.
In this letter he not only begged the President to
harbor these unauthorized frauds from Canada, but
told him that he did not understand the demand of
the people for peace; that something must be done
to prevent a Northern insurrection ; and then laid
down a plan of settlement, finally telling the Presi-
dent that if he did not deem it advisable to make an
offer of terms to the rebels, he should listen to what
ovGoO'^lc
ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 489
they had to say. A few dtiys later, owing to another
letter received from Canada, Mr. Greeley wrote the
President, on the 13th, that he had reliable inforoia-
tion that authorized agents were awaiting near Niag-
ara FalU to confer with him, or any commissioners
of his appointment. Two days afterwards Mr. Lin-
coln, io replying to this letter, said : —
" I am disappointed that you have not already reached
here with those commissioners. If they would consent to
come on being sbowD my letter .to you on the 9th instant,
show that and this to them; and, if they will consent to
come on the terms stated in the former, bring them. I
not only intend a sincere effort for peace, but I intend
that you shall be a personal witness that it is made."
Mr. Hay, the private secretary of the President,
carried this message to New York, and having the
authority to make out a passport, at the suggestion
of Mr. Greeley included in it the names of four per-
sons, Clement C. Clay, Jacob Thompson (Secretary
of the Navy nnder Buchanan), James P. Holcombe,
and the wild, unreliable, revolutionary George N.
Sanders. On the 17th Mr. Greeley arrived at Niag-
ara Fails, and at once notified these men that he
was ready to furnish them a safe conduct to Wash-
ington as the authorized agents of the rebel authori-
ties. This brought him a letter from Clay and Hol-
combe, Thompson never at any time appearing in the
intrigue, informing htm that there was a mistake
about their being authorized peace negotiators from
Jefferson Davis, but stating that they were in his
confidence, and any satisfactory steps on their part
ovGoot^lc
LIFE AND TIMES OF
:e would be received well at Richmond.
1 Mr. Oreeley that he hnd bceo going too
i men had not authorized the representa-
d made to the President, and on which
iffixed the safe conduct had been granted,
now substantially acknowledged this fact
1 sent to Washington for further orders,
ay was now hastened ofT to Niagara with
lication : —
"EiKCDTivE Makbion, Washwoton, D. C, l
"July 18, 1864. /
KXY comcmim:—
ipositioDS which embrace the restoratioa of
tegrlty of ihe whole Union, and the abandon-
'ery, and which comes by and with an au-
tan control the armiee now at war against the
s, will be received and considered by the
)vemment of the United States, and will be
il terms on other substantial and collateral
lie bearer or bearers thereof shall have safe
ways. Abraham Lincoln,"
ter had now gone as far as it could go,
I it was designed to go from the first. Mr.
it home, and Clay and Holcombe wrote
letter dated on the 21st. This letter
r not have been dictiited by Northern
} who were in communication with these
. was ingeniously constructed to favor
les in the coming elections, as well as
ebel cause abroad. The foundation for
ce of strength which their letter acquired
' had supplied, and though he did this
ovGoO'^lc
ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 49t
through his anxiety for the accomplishment of some-
thing always impossible, he not only refused to undo
the wrong he had done, but gave himself, to some
extent, to the work of confirming and nggravating it.
This letter accused the President of opening the
door anconditioniilly for untrammeled, liberal nego-
tiations, and then closing it by an utter change of
bia purposes and pretenses in the communication of
the 18th addressed "To whom it may concern."
This, they said, presented the case in an entirely
different aspect from the first impressions they had
of the President's disposition. It was a rude with-
drawal, they said, of a courteous overture for nego-
tiations. And although the letter is purposely
couched in evasive terms as to any conditions which
would have been acceptable to the rebels, and pur-
posely and absolutely falsely conveys the idea that
an opportunity honorable to the Union was now
rudely thrown away, still they were not able to get
through it, without revealing themselves and reveal-
ing what the President had long known and what
Horace Qreeley and everybody else had just as good
grounds for knowing. They said : —
" Wliilst an ardent desire for peace pervades the people
of the Confederate States, we rejoice to believe that there
are few, if any, among them, who would purchase it at the
expense of liberty, honor, and self-respect. If it can be
secured only by submission to terms of conquest, the gen-
eration is yet unborn which will witness its restitution.
If there be any military autocrat in the North, who is
eutitled to proffer the conditions of this manifesto, there is
none in the South authorized to entertain them."
ov Google
492 LIFE AND TIMES OF
These irresponsible men well knew before they
set out on this affair what would be the result of ii,
and never designed it for anything but political effect,
and everything had worked to their hand. They
knew they could offer but one proposition, uDcondi-
tional independence for the South, and that could
never be listened to by the Oovernment. The utter
falsity of their position and their letter was plain
enough. But the point where Mr. Lincoln was af-
fected was in the charge of his change from his
original hope he had held oat at first to " no truce
to rebels, except to bury their dead, until every
man shall have laid down his arms, submitted to
the Oovernment, and sued for toercy."
Mr. Lincoln's first letter to Greeley about this
affair was as follows : —
" Dbab Sib, — Your letter of the 7th, with Enclosures
received. If you can find any person anywhere professing
to have any proposition of Jefferson Davis, in writing, for
peace, embracing the restoration of the Union and aban-
donment of slavery, whatever else it embraces, say to him
he may come to me with yoa, and that if be really brings
such proposition, he shall, at the least, have safe conduct
with the paper (and without publicity if he chooses) to the
point where you shall have met him. The same if there
be two or more persons. Yours truly,
" A. LiNoouf .
This was the only letter written by the President
on the subject, except that on the 15th, given sub-
stantially already. So at the outset he had told Mr.
ov Google
AUKAUAU LINCOLN. 493 .
Greeley, in substance, what he said in the communi-
cation " To whom it may concern," and he bad aever
intimated anything else. He had not changed. Mr.
Greeley, however had failed to show the Canada
rebels Mr. Lincoln's letters of the 9th and 15thj as
he had been directed to do, and bad told them noth-
ing about the conditions of their safe conduct, and
when this letter, which was a wholly false poUtical
fabrication, was published, he gave it strength by
holding out the untruth that the ' President had
changed from good to bad between the 9th and the
18th of July. The "Opposition" or " Copperheads,"
as they were called, now burst out in a furious assault
on the Pr^sid^nt, taking this letter of the two rebels
and this pseudo attempt at negotiation as their text.
Every evil to the country and its cause, that was
possible, was made out of it
Mr. Lincoln felt deeply the injury Mr. Greeley
had done to him and the country, and with a view of
correcting it, applied to him for the publication of
their full correspondence, omitting such parts of Mr.
Greeley's letters as he thought would be mischiev-
ous, relating to his predicted insurrections in the
North, and similar foolishness. But Mr. Greeley
refused to have any part of his letters, utterly inad-
missible, really, throughout, printed, without the ex-
tremely bad parts as well. So Mr. Lincoln, conclud-
ing that he should suffer the injustice to himself,
dropped the matter, hoping the people would take
that view of the case which the good of the Nation
required.
ovGoO'^lc
494 UFE AUD TDCES OF
The follo\ving letter from him to the editor of
'* The New York Times " must end the matter here : —
^KsioN, Washington
" Ai^mt 16, 18M.
"Hon. HiNRT J. Ra\-iioiid:—
" My Dear Sie, — I have proposed to Mr. Greeley
that the Niagara correspondence be published, euppressiag
only the parts of his letters over which the red pencil is
drawn in the copy which I herewith send. He declines
giving his consent to the publication of his letters, unless
these parts be published with the rest I have concluded
that it is better for m« to submit, for the time, to the coo-
sequences of the false position in which I consider he has
phiced me, than to subject the counlry to the oonaequeDces
of publishing these discouraging and injurious parts. I
send you this, and the accompanying copy, not for publica-
tion, but merely to explain to you, and that you preserve
them until their proper time shall come.
"Yours truly, Abeaham Limooln."
About the same time another effort, no doubt de-
signed for a similar purpose, political effect, was
made in a different direction. Colonel James F
Jaque^ and J. R. Gillmore (Edmund Kirk) without
authority from Mr. Lincoln got permission to pass
through the lines to go to Richmond, where they
had a long interview with Jefferson Davis, and in
which they drew from fiim this statement: —
" I desire peace as luuob as you do ; I deplore blood-
shed as much as you do ; but I feel that not one drop of
the blood sbed in this war is on my hands. I can look
up to my God and say this. I tried all in my power to
avert .this war. I saw it coming, and for twelve years I
worked night and day to prevent it ; but I could noti
ov Google
ABRAHAM UNCOLN. 495
The North was mati and blind ; it would not let us govern
onrselves ; and so the war oatne ; and now it mast go on
till the last man of this generation falla in his tracks,
and his children seise his musket and fight our battle, un-
less 70U acknowledge our right to self-government. We
are not fighting for slavery. We are fighting for inde-
pendence, and that or extermination we will have. . . .
"Say to Mr. Hiincoln, from me, that I shall at any
time he pleased to receive proposals for peace on the basis
of our independence. It will tw useless to approach me
with any other."
This statement drawa from Mr. Davis was worth
a great deal to the national cause, politically and
otherwise, at home and abroad. It settled the mat-
ter indisputably that the war must go on until the
Rebellion was overthrown. This fact was well known
before. The rebels had never lost an opportunity
to express themselves. They wanted no compromise
with the Yankees. In the face of all these things,
could it be believed that the men who talked of com-
promise, conciliation, amicable settlement, and restora-
tion of the Union were sincere? Would changing
the Administration of public affairs at such a crisis
into the hands of the Democratic party, as then organ*
ized, restore the Union ? Was not uU this " Oppo-
sition" madness and folly a part of the war for the
establishment of slavery and the overthrow of the
Union?
The following rebel opinions must serve to close
this chapter: —
"The lime for compromise haa now paned, and the South
is determined to maintain her position, and make all who oppose
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496 UFE AND TIMES OF
lier smen Southern powder and feel Southern eted if ooerciOD
is persiBted io. He had do doubt* ae to the result He said
we will maintain our right* and government at all hazards.
We ask nothing, we want nothing ; we will hare no complies^
tioDB. If the other States join our confederation thej can fr«ely
come in on our temiB. Our separation from the old Union is
now complete. No compromise, no reconstruction is now to
be entertained." (Jefferson Davis, at Montgomeiy, February
16, 1861.)
" I am agunst it now and forever. What have we worked
forf Simplj' a new constitution? Nol we sought to be relieved
of the North because they were fleedng us; giving fishing boun-
ties and otherwise squandering the public treasure, and filling
their pockets from our labors. I would not unite with them
if they were to bind themselves in amounts more than they
were worth, and give me a dbtreea warrant to sell them out.
I wish the people of Georgia to say : This shall be a slavehold-
ing ccnfed3racj.and nothing rise." (T. R. B.Cobb, of Goor-^
at Atlanta, in 1861, on reconstructioa.)
" It can not be that the people of the Confederate States
can again entertain a feeling of auction and respect for the
Government of the United States. We have, therefore, sepa-
rated from them; and now let it be understood that the separa-
tion is and ought to be final and irrevocable ; that Vii^nia
' will under no circumstances entertun any proposition from
any quarter which may have for its object a restoration or re-
construction of the late Union, on any terms or conditions
whatever.'" ((Jovemor XiCtcber, of Virginia, in December,
1862.)
" It is a &vorite idea with a great many, that posably the
old order of things could be restore^ ; that our rights under
that Constitution could be guaranteed to us, and everything
move on peacefully as before the war. My friends, there are
a great many desirable things; but the question, not what may
be wished, but what may be obtained, is the one reasonable
men may consider. It is desirable to have a lovely wife and
plenty of pretty children; but every man can 't have them. IteU
you now, candidly, there is no more possibUity of reoonetructing
the old Union and reinstating things as they were four yean
ovGoO'^lc
A^tAHAH UNOOUI. 497
1^ dian exists for joa to gather up the scattered bones of
jaoT sons who have &UeD in thi« Btru^le from one end of the
country to the other, re-dothe them vith flesh, fill their yeina
with the blood they have so generously shed, and their lunge
with the same breath with which they breathed out their last
prayer for th«r country'B triumph and independence." (Gov-
ernor Vance, of North Carolina, in a speech at Wilkesboro,
in 1864.)
'No one, however, knows better than Abraham Lincoln
that any terms he might offer the Southern people which con-
template their restoration to his bloody and brutal Government,
would be rejected with scorn and execration. If, instead of
devoting to death our President and military and civil officers, he
had proposed to make JefiTerson Davis his successor, Lee Com-
mander-io-Chi^ of tin Yankee armies, and our domestic insti-
tutions not only tect^bed at iiome, but readopted in the Free
Slates, provided the South would once more enter the Yankee
Union, there is not a man, woman, or diild in the Confederacy
who would not spit upon the proportion. We desire no eom-
paaioDship upon any terms with a Nation of robbers and mui^
dereis. The miscreants, whose atrocities in this war have caused
the whole civilized world to shudder, must keep, henceforth,
their distance. They shall not be our masters, and we would
not have them for our slaves." (" The Dispatdt," iq dJBf wiping
Mr. Lincoln's Amnesty Proclamation.)
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LIFE AND TIMES OF
CHAPTER XXI.
1864— WAR OF THE REBELUON — NOMINATIONS-CANDI-
DATES—PLATFORMS— PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION-
NO SWAPPING HORSES WHILE CROSSING
A STREAM— THE CABINET.
THE friends of the proeecatioD of the war, the
QDdoubted Union men of the country, were
greatly divided at the begiiuiing of this year. In*
deed, a bitter and wicked faction was organized
among those who had been supporters of the A.d-
ministration, and classed under the head of Repub-
lican. For a time the influence of this faction was
exceedingly iigurious to the nationiil caiise; more
80, perhaps, than that of the " Copperheads," in effect
at all times the allies of the Rebellion. This faction
Tehemently opposed the renomination of Mr. Lincoln
for the Presidency; attacked his official acts, the
policy and conduct of public affairs under him ; at-
tacked his character; and in its general course
greatly disturbed the country, as well as weakened
foreign confidence. " The New York Tribune " and
many other Republican newspapers systematically
opposed the renomination of Mr. Lincoln, although
their opposition was tempered, to some extent, by a
sense of the injury they were likely to render the
country. But few of these men could or would ever
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ABBAHA.M LINCOLN. 499
see that they were then placing themselves side by
side with the eoemies of the country, of the Union,
and would be so fixed and adjudged in future times.
With a view of quieting or dispersing this faction,
the friends of the Administration, and as it proved,
the true friends of the Union, took steps to hold the
nominatii:^ conventioD at an unnsnally early day.
This movement met the energetic protest of the Re-
publican malcontents who wanted more time to infect
and distract public sentiment. Of course, the leadets
of the anti-Lincoln or anti-Administration Republi-
cans were mainly men who had failed in their
schemes of self-advancement, or failed to have things
their own way. They were disappointed aspirants
for 'military glory; disappointed office-seekers; dis-
tippointed schemers for this and that; Abolitionists
who wanted slavery crushed out at once whether it
could be done or not ; men of wild and unreasonable
theories ; men who had asked and not received ; they
were of the men who always rise up in every time
of calamity to disturb the common harmony, to de-
mand what can not or should not be done, and who
themselves conld not do what they seemed to desire,
if all possible power were 'given them.
On the Ist of May these Republican factionists
issned a call for a oonvention to meet in Cleveland
on the last day of that month. In this call it was
said : "The time has come for all independent m'en,
jealous of their liberties and of the national great-
ness, to confer together and unite to resist the swell-
ing invasion of an open, shameless, and unrestrained
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500 LIFE AND TIMES OF
patroDAge which threatens to ingulf under its de-
structive wave the rights of the people, the liberty
and dignity of the Nation," Several other calls for
the same convention were made, and all of them
were expressed in similarly foolish and untrue lan-
guage, and signed by men then and ever afterwards
equally undistinguished. The convention met at
Cleveland, Ohio, according to the call, with fifteen
States and the District of Colutabia represented by
self-appointed delegates. Most of them were the
friends of Fremont, and a very large per cent of them
were Germans. General John Cochmne, of New
York, was pei-manent president, and on takiog the
chair made a very extravagant speech.
John G. Fremont was nominated by acclamatioD
as the candidate for President, and with few dissent-
ing votes John Cochrane was chosen for the Vice-
Presidency. A platform in keeping with the char-
acter of the convention was adopted; and both candi-
dates accepted the " distinguished ho/ior." General
Fremont's letter of acceptance dated June 4, 1864,
was marked by especial severity towards the Ad-
ministration, and was a source of deep regrefc to
many who had formerly 'held him, perhaps, unde-
servedly high. Of this letter Governor Morton, of
Indiana, said : —
." I carried the standard of General Fremont to the
best of roy poor ability through the canvass of 1856, and I
have BiDce endeavored to sustain him, not nnly as a politician,
bat as a military chieftain, and never until I read this
letter did I have occasion to regret what I have done.
ovGoO'^lc
ABR&HAM USCOVf. 501
It bae been read with joy by hU enemies and witli pais
by his friends, and omitting one or two sentences, there
is nothing in it that might not have been written or sub-
scribed without inconsistency by Mr. Yallundigham."
This wa3 the general verdict. Fremont finally
declined to make the raoe, not, as he said for the
benefit of Mr. Lincoln, whom, in his greatness, he
considered at that time nn utter failure, but for the
sake of defeating McClellan of whom he thought
much worse. This was, appropriately, the end of
the political and military careers of Geaer.il Fre-
mont; and it may well be doubted whether he had
the necessary qualities for success either as a poli-
tician or a general ; a statesman, in any high sense
of the word, he was not. Not always in a practi-
cable and safe sense was he even a " Pathfinder."
At noon on Tnesdny^ June 7th> the Republican
or Union National Convention assembled in Balti-
more. Robert J. Breckinridge, the distinguished
Kentucky Presbyterian clergyman, was chosen tem-
porary president, and on taking the chair, made a
long, stirring speech, in which he clearly indicated
. that before the convention began its work it was well
known who the chief on the ticket would be ; the
loyal people whom the convention represented, had
but one candidate, and it had assembled to execute
their will. In the afternoon a permanent organiza-
tion was effected, with ex-Governor William Benni-
son, of Ohio, as chnirman.
On the following morning the matter of credentials
was disposed of by admitting the Badical Union dele*
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UFE AND TIHE8 OF
oa of the two delegatioiia presenting themseWeB
1 Missouri, and ndmitting delegates from Arkan*
Louisiana, and Tennessee with equal voting priv-
es of those from other States, although this course
not in harmony with the Act of Congress ex-
liDg the people of rebel States from participation
ationnl affmrs. A delegation from South Carolina
iared, but this State was not admitted. Dele-
3 from Florida and Virginia were admitted with-
the right to vote. The most noted character,
taps, in this convention was Parson W. G. Brown-
of Tennessee.
[t was now moved to nominate Mr. Lincoln by
tmatioQ, but this meeting some opposition, a
>t was taken giving him all the votes of the con-
ion except those from Missouri, which, under
ructions, were oast for General Grant. Mr. Lin-
's renomination was then made nnanimous.
The candidates for the Vice-Presidency were
nibal Hnmlin, the incambent; Andrew Johnson,
tary Governor of Tennessee; and Daniel S. Dick-
n, of New York. On the first ballot Mr. John-
received two hundred, Vice-President Hamlin
hundred and forty-five, Mr. Dickinson one hun-
Ired and thirteen. General B. F. Butler twenty-
t, Lovell H. Rousseau, of Kentucky, twenty-one,
twelve were scattered among others. Votes.
i now changed in favor of Andrew Johnson, and
nomination made unanimous. After the appoint-
t of an '* Executive Committee " the convention
umed.
ovGoO'^lc
ABRAHAM LINGOLIT. 503
On the following day, Thursday 9th, Mr. Lincoln
was waited npoa at the White House and duly noti-
fied of hie renomination, on which occasion he made
a brief speech, and gave unmiBtakable evidence of
his gratification with the action of the convention
The following is Mr. Lincoln's formal letter of
acceptance : —
" EiBcurm HAireiON, WASHinaTOX, t
" June 27, 1864 (
"Gentlemen, — Your letter of the 14th iDstaot for-
mally notifying me that I have been nomiDated by the
convention you represent for the Presidency of the United
States for four years from the 4th of March next, has been
received. The nomination is gratefully accepted, as the
reBolntions of the convention, called the platform, are
heartily approved.
" While the resolution in regard to the supplanting of
republican goverbment upon the Western Continent ia
fully concurred in, there might be misunderstanding were
I not to say that the position of the Government in rela-
tion t» the action of France in Mexico as assumed through
the State Department and indorsed by the convention,
among the measures and acts of the Executive, will be
fiiithfully maintained so long as the state of facts shall leave
that position pertinent and applicable.
" I am especially gratified that the soldier and the sea-
man were not forgotten by the convention, as they forever
must and will be remembered by the grateful country for
whose salvation they devote their lives.
"Thanking yon for the kind and complimentary terms
in which you have commanicated the nomination and
other proceedings of the convention, I subscribe myself,
" Your obedient servant, Abbaham Lincoln."
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LIFE AND TIIEBB OV
)d the 29th of Angost the Democrats met in
ention in Chicago and Qominated General George
ton McClellan for the Presidency and George H.
lletoQ, of Ohio, an anti-war Democrat, for the
'Presidency. Some account of this conventioD
I be found in the hist volume of this work<.
The Repubhcan malcontents still made some effort
organize an opposition to Mr. Lincoln, but this
ly gave way under the strong unanimity with
ih the patriotic and the friends of the prosecution
be war joined in his support, aud by the first
jday in November the followers of General Mo-
!an and the Chicago platform were about t^e
visible opponents of the President or his policy.
Che strong peace wing of the Democracy, or the
aerheads, made every possible attack on Mr. Lin-
, on what they supposed to be hb private con-
. as well as his administration of public afllurs,
the false was not distinguished from the true.
newspapers gave a wide circulation to every
Jer. Never were chaises so vengeful and heart-
made against any Presidential crmdidate, perhaps,
lose agiiinst Mr. Lincoln at this time. That they
i in the main or wholly foundationleas -fabrica-
i, no one would now question. The common
try of political campaigns was, however, but re-
ing itself, only in its most bitter and venomous
,. Nor were the Republicans far behind their
:uided opponents in the use of those instruments
ih render political contests disgraceful and dis-
ing to the re&ned and the true. As the contest
:b,GoO'^lc
ABRAHAM UNCOLN. 60ft
deepened, the war or loyal party dropped its own
disseDsioiis, and the anti-war Democrats became rec-
onciled to their candidate, who was not willing to
acknowledge that the war had been a failnre. Mili-
tary events strengthened the side of the Administrar-
tion, and long before the day of the election the
loyal people bad decided who shonld be President,
had decided that it was unwise and unsafe to swap
horses while crossing a stream.
Daring all this time Mr. Lincoln was as nsnal
unswerving in well-doing. He neglected no jnat and
reasonable method of producing bantiony in his own
party, or among the temporary supporters of the
Administrati'OQ and the war. Od the 23d of Sep-
tember, 1864, he invited Mr. Blair to withdraw from
his Cabinet, and in his place he put Ez-Govemor
William Denoison, of Ohio. Mr. Chase also with-
drew from the CabiAet, and in July, 1864, William
Pitt Fesseoden, of Maine, took his poettJon, giving
place in March, 1865, to Hugh KIcCulloch. Id Janu-
ary of (he previous year Caleb B. Smith had been
displaced in the Interior Department by John P.
Usher, of Indiana.
These changes, to a great extent, were made in
accordance with the demands of the party, and not
from any want of harmony with the I^sident. Mr.
Blair had been an able and pmctical Postmaster-
General, and under his management and suggestion
were brought about some valnahle reforms in the mail
service of the country. Although some of these re*
forms were expensive they have greaUy contributed
ov Google
S06 LIFE AND TIMES OF
towards the perfection of the system, and, several
causes operating in his favor, he was enabled to oret-
come to a great extent the long standing deficits in
the revenue of his Department. Under him the free
delivery system in cities, and the railway service
were greatly and beneficially modified or entirely
changed ; the postal money-order system was intro-
duced, which, after the first year, has continually
brought a net income to the Department; foreign
postal conventions were effected, and other progress-
ive and beneficial acta serve to leave the mark of
this Cabinet officer upon the history of public admin-
istrations. Under Mr. Blair's energetic sucfiessor tbe
management of this asefiil Department of the Govern*
ment was efficient and admirable.
Of tiie Treasui-y Department little need be said
here. The "greenbacks'" author will not readily be
forgotten, in the face of the financial ruins of the
past, by a race of money-lovers and money-getters.
The personal relations between the President and
Mr. Chase were not, probably, the best, but there had
been no time after the occasion arose, in the death of
- Chief Justice Taney, when Mr. Lincoln did not design
offering this successful financier and aspirant for the
Presidency the place he took on the Supreme Bench.
On the 18th of July, 1864, the President issued
a proclamation calling for five hundred thousand
soldiers, and providing for a draft to supply defi*
cienciea. On the 20th of December another call was
issued for three hundred thousand more. Two other
calls, in February and March, had also been made in
ovGoO'^C
ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 607
this year, amounting to seven handred thoasand, so
that on this election year one million and a half of
troops hftd heen called for by the President in spite
of the " Opposition " cry of " no more men and not a
dollar of money for this cruel war." Besides these
enonnous demands on the people, a hundred thousand
hundred days' men were gratuitously furnished by
the States of . Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Iowa, and
Wisconsin.
Besides working, the President wrote several im<
portant letters during this political canvass, nor did
he hesitate to speak when called upon to do so. On
the occasion of a serenade on the Idth of October,
Mr. Lincoln appeared in front of the White House
and said : —
"Feiends and Fellow-citizens, — I am notified
that this is a compliment paid me by the loyal Maryland-
era resident in this District. I infer that the adoption of
the new Constitution for that State furnishes the ocoasion,
tad that in your view the extirpation of slavery consti-
tntes the chief merit of the new Constitution. Most
heartily do I congratulate you and Maryland, and the Na-
tion and the world, upon the event. I regret that it did
not occur two years sooner, which I am sure would have
saved to the Nation more money than would have met all
the private loss incident to the measure. But it has come
at last, and I sincerely hope its friends may fully realise
all (Jieir anticipations of good from it, and that its oppo-
nents may by its effect be agreeably and profitably dis-
appointed.
"A word upon another subject. Something was said
by the Secretary of State, in his recent speech at Auburn,
which has been construed by some into a threat that if I
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18 LIF£ AND TIMES OF
ould be beaten at the election, I will, between tbes
d tbe end of my Constitutional terra, do what I maty
able to ruin the Qovernment. Others regard the tiict
at the Chicago Convention adjourned, not eitie die, but
meet again if called to do so by a particular individ-
I, as theintimation of a purpose that if their nominee
all be elected he will at once aeice control of the Gor-
ament.
" I hope the good people will permit themselves to
Ser no uneosineaa on either point. I am stru^ling to
lintain the Government; not to overthrow it. I am
■uggling especially to prevent others from overthrowing
and I therefore say, that if I shall live, I shall remain
esident until the 4th of next March, and that whoever
nil be constitutionally elected thereto in Kovember,
all be duly installed as President on the 4th of March,
d that in the meantime I shall do my utmost, that who^
er is to hold the helm for the next voyage shall start
th the best possible chance to save the ship. This is
e to the people, both on principle and under the Coo-
tution. Their will, Constitutionally expressed, is the q1-
Qate law for all.
" If they should deliberately resolve to have immediate
see, even at the loss of their country and their liberties,
know not the power or the right to resist them. It is
iir own business, and they must do aa they please with
:ir own. I believe, however, they are still resolved to
^serve their country and their liberty, and in this, in
ice or out of it, I am resolved to stand by them.
" I may add that in this pnrpose, to save the country
i its liberties, no classes of peo^e seem so nearly unan-
ous as the soldiers in the field and the seamen afloaL
I they not have the hardest of it? Who shoald quail
lile they do not ?
" God bless the soldiers and seamen, with all their
ive commanders!"
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ABBAHAK LINCOLN. 609
Mr. Lincoln was again sacoeesful by an over-
whelming majority. Some furthra aoconot o€ this
election is to be found in the last volnme of this
work. How the President himself viewed the result
may be seen in the following speech, delivered at
the White House on the night of the election : —
, "Friends and FBLLow-cmzENs, — Even before I
had been informed by you that this coiDpliment was paid
me by loyal citiEena of Pennsylvaniii friendly to me, I had
inferred that you were of that portion of my couDtrymen
who think that the best interests of the Nation are to be
Bubserved by tbe support of the present Adminietratton.
I do not pretend to say that you, who think bo, embrace
all tbe patriotism and loyalty of the country ; but I do
believe, and I trust without personal interest, that the
welfare of the country does require that such support And
ittdorsenieDt be given. I earnestly believe that the con-
aequences of this day's work, if it be as you assume, and
m now eeems probable, will be to the lasting advantage
if not to tbe very salvation of the country. I can not, at
this hour, say what has been tbe result of the election, but
whatever it may be, I have no desire to modify this opia-
ion; that all who have labored to-day in behalf of tbe
Union organization, have wrought for the best interest of
their country and the world, not only for tbe present but
for all future ages. I am thankful to God for this ap<
proval of tbe people; but while deeply grateful for this
mark of their ooofidenoe in me, if I know my heart, my
gratitude is free from any taint of personal triumph. I
do not impugn tbe motives of any one opposed to me. It
is no Treasure to me to triumph over any one, but I give
tbanira to the Almighty for this evidence of the people's
neolution to stand by free government and the rights of
humanity."
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UFE AND TJMES OF
a the lOtb of November, General Grant, who
ilmost equally concerned with Mr, Liocola in
BBult of the election, wrote : —
"City Point, November 10, 1864—10.30 P. it.
Edwin M. Stanton, Secretary of Wrt: —
Euough now seems to be Icnown to say who is to hold
ins of Government for the next four years.
ilToDgratulate the President for me for this double
y-
The election having passed off quietly, no bloodshed
t.tbrougbout the land, is a victory worth more to the
-y than a battle won.
Elebeldom and Europe will construe it so.
" U. S. Gbant, Lieutenant-General."
a the same ^tght the President had just made
remarkable speech to a large procession gath-
Eirouad the Executive Mansion : —
?RiENDe AND FELLOw-CTTiZEys, — It has long been
re question whether any government not too strong
le liberties of its people can be strong enough to
EUn its own existence in great eniei^nciefl. On this
the present Rebellion brought our Republic to a
I test ; and a Presidential election, occurring in regular
I during the Rel>eIlion, added not a little to the
!f the loyal people unt^ were pat to the utmost of
strength by the Rebellion, must they not fall when
d and partially paralyzed by a political war among
elves?
)ut the election was a necessity. We can not have
ovemment without elections ; and if the Rebellion
jbrce ns to forego or postpone a national election,
;ht fairly claim to have already conquered and
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ABRAHAM LINCOLN.
ruined us. The strife of th^ election is bat hatna
practically applied to the fects of the case. \
occurred in this case must ever recur in simil:
Human nature will not change. In any future {
tional trial, compared with the men of Ihia, we ai
as weak and aa strong, as silly and as wise, as
as good.
"Let as, therefore, study the incidents of this, a
ophy to learn wisdom from, and none of them at
to be revenged.
" But the election, along with its incidental at
airable strife, has done good, too. It has demi
that a people's government can sustain a national
in the midst of a great civil war. Until now, it
been known to the world that this was a possibi
shows, also, how sound and how strong we still
shows that, even among candidates of the same ]
who is most devoted to the Union, and most op
treason, can receive most of the people's votes. 1
also, to the extent yet known, that we have m
now than we had when the war began. Gold
in its place, but living, brave, patriotic men, a]
than gold.
" But the Hebellion continues ; and now that tht
is over^ may not all, having a common interest, n
a common effort to save our common country?
own part, I have striven, and will strive, to avc
ing any obstacle in the way. So long as I hs
here, I have not willingly planted a thorn in sd
bosom,
"While I am deeply sensible to the high cot
of a re-election, and duly grateful, as I tmst, to I
God, for having directed my countrymen to a ri{
elusion, as I think, for their own good, it adds n<
my satisfaction that any other man may be diaa
or pained by the result.
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hn
bn
jvGooi^lc
ABRAHAM LINCOLN.
CHAPTBR XXII.
1S64-WAR OFTHE REBELLION— CONGRESS IN Tl
OF 1864— LAST SESSION UNDER MR. UNCC
FOURTH ANNUAL MESSAGE— END
OF SLAVERY.
ON Monday, December 5, 1864, Congi
assembled (last seseion of the " Thi
Congress"), and on the following day the
sent to botb Houses his
FOURTH ANNUAL MESSAGE.
FlLLOW-CITIZBNB OT THE SENATE AKD HoiTaB OP ItSPRBS
Again the bleBdogs of health and abuodant ha
our profoandeet gratitude to AJmighty God.
The condition of our foreign afiaire is reasonably
Mexico continues to be a theater of civil war.
political relations with that country have undergone
we have, at the same time, strictly maintained n<
tween the belligerents. *
At the request of the States of Costa Rica and
a competent en^neer has been authorized to make
the river San Juan and the port of San Juan. It
of much aatiafaction that the diilicultiefl which fo
excited some political apprehensions, and caused 1
the interoceanic tranut route, have been amicably ai
that there is a good prospect that the route will
opened with an increase of capacity and adaptation,
not exaggerate either the commercial or the political
of that great improvement
It would be doing injustjce to an important S(
can State not to acknowledge the directness, fWnkni
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514 LIFE AND TIMES OF
diality -mth irhich die United States of Colombin have entered
ioto intimate relations with this GoTernmeDt. A claims con-
Tenlioa has been constituted to complete the unfinished vork
of the one which closed its sesuon in 186t.
The new liberal constitution of Venezuela hariog gone into
e0ect with the universal acquiescence of the people, the govern-
meat under it has been rect^iied, and diplomatic intercourse
with it has opened in a cordial and fricDdly spirit The long
deferred Avea Island claim has been satiafkctorilj paid and
discharged.
Mutual payments hare been made of the cl^ms awarded by
the late joint commiBsion for the settlement of claims between
the United States and Peru. An earnest and cordial friendship
continues to exist between the two countries, and such eibrts
as were in my power have been used to remove misunderstand-
ing and avert a threatened war between Peru and Spain.
Our relations are of the most friendly nature with Chili,
the Aigentine Republic, Bolivia, Costa Bics, Paraguay, San
Salvador, and Hayti.
During the post year no diderences of any kind have aris«i
with any of those republics, and, on the other hand, their sym-
pathies with the Uuit«(I States are constantly expreesed with
cordiality and earnestness.
The claim arising from the seizure of the cargo of the brig
Macedonian in 1821 has been paid in full by the government
ofChiU.
Civil war continues in the Spanish part of San Dohaingo,
apparently without prospect of an early close.
Official correspondence lias been freely opened with Liberia,
and it gives us a pleasing view of social and political pr(^;reeB
in that Republic It may be expected to derive new vigor from
American influence, improved by the rapid disappearaiice of
slavery in the United States.
I solicit your authority to furnish to the Republic a guo-boat
at moderate cost, to be reimbursed to the United States by tn>
stallments. Such a vessel is needed for the safety of that State
against the native African races; and in Liberian hands it
would be more e^cdve in arresting the African slave-tiade
than a squadron in our own hands. The poBesnon of the least
ovGoo'^lc
ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 516
organized naval force would B^taulate a generous ambition in
the Republic, and the confidence which we should manifeet by
furniBhiDg it would win forbeamnce and &Tor towards th« col-
ony from all civilized nations.
The proposed overland telegraph between America and Eu-
rope, by the way of Bebring's Straits and Asiatic Ruroia, which
was sanctioued by Congress at the last session, has been under-
taken, under very &vorable circumstances, by an association of
American citizens, with the cordial good-will and support as
well of this Government as of those of Great Britain and Rus-
sia. Assurances have been received from most of the South
American Stat«s of their high appreciation i>f the enterprise,
and their readibess to co-operate in constructing lines tributary
to that world-encircling communication. I leani, with much
satisfaction, that the noble design of a telegraphic communica-
tion between the eastern const of America and Great Britain
has been renewed with full expectation of its eariy accom-
plishment.
Thus it is hoped, that with the return of domestic peace the
conntry will be able to resume with energy and advantage its
former hi^ career of commerce and civilization.
Our very popular and es^mable representative in Egypt
died in April last. An unpleasant altercation which arose be-
tween the temporary incuinbent of the office and the govern-
ment of the pasha resulted in a suspension of intercourse. The
evil waa promptly corrected on the arrival of the successor in
the consulate, and onr relations with Egypt, as well as our re-
lations with the Barbary powers, are entirely satisfactory.
Hie rebellion which has so long been flagrant in China has
at last been suppressed, with the co-operating good offices of
this Government, and of the other Western commercial states.
The judicial consular establishment there has become very dif-
ficult and onerous, and it will need legislative revision to adapt
it to the extension of our commerce, and to the more intimate
intercourse which has been instituted with the government and
people of that vast empire. China seems to he accepting with
hearty good-will the conventional laws which regulate commer-
dal and social intercourse among the Western nations.
Owing to th« peculiar MtuatJon of Japan, and tbe anonsa-
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LIFE AND TIMES OF
form of ita governmeot, tbe action of tlint empire in per-
ling treaty stipulatiuns is incouBtant and capricioua. Nev-
eleas, good progress hu been effected by tite Western
ers, moving wiUi eoligbteDed conoert Our own pecuniary
ns have been allowed, or put in course of eettlemeut, aud
inland sea has been reopened to commerce. There le reasoD
to believe that these proceedings have increased rather than
iDished the friendship of Japan towards the United States,
rbe ports of Norfolk, Fenmndina, and Pensacola have l^een
led by proclamation. It ia hoped that foreign merchants
now consider whether it is not safe and more proBtable to
iselves, as well as just to the United States, to resort to
e and other open ports, than it is to pursue, tbrougb niany
rds; and at vast cost, a contraband trade with other ports
;h are closed, if not by actual military operations, at least
. lawful and elective blockade.
?QT myself, I have no doubt of tbe power and doty of the
cutive, under the law of nations, to exclude enemies of the
an race from an asylum in the United States, - If Congress
Id think that proceedings in such cares lack the authority
.\Y, or ought to be further regulated by it, I recommend
provision be made for effectually preventing foreign slave-
ers from acquiring domicile and &cilities for their crimioal
pation in our country.
t is possible that if this were a new and open question, the
time powers, with the light they now enjoy, would not con-
the privileges of a naval belligerent to the insurgents of
United States, destitute as they are and alwa3rG have been,
Jly of ships and of ports and harbors. Disloyal emissaries
! been neither less assiduous nor more successful during the
year than they were before that time, in their efforts, under
r of that privilege, to embroil our country in foreign war«.
desire and determination of the maritime States to defeat
dengn are believed to be aa uncere as, and can not be more
est than, our own.
feverlheleas, unforeseen difficultiee have arisen, especially in
dlian and British porta, and on the northem boundary of
United States, which have required, and are likely to con-
e to require, the practice of constant vigilance, and a just and
:b,GOO'^IC
ABRAHAM LINCOI-N. 517
conciliAtory spirit on the part of the United States, tu well aa
of the nations Mncerned and their govemmento. Commiseion-
ers have been appointed under the treaty with Great Britain,
on the adjustment of the daiius of the Hudson Baj andPiiget'e
Sound Agricultural Companies in Oregon, and are now pro-
ceeding to the execution of the trust asragned them.
In view of the insecurity of life in the region adjacent to
the Canadian border bj recent ataaults and depredations com-
mitted by inimical and desperate persons who are harbored
there, it has been thought proper to give notice that after the
expiration of six months, the period conditionally stipulated in
the existing arrangements with Great Britain, the United Stfitea
must hold themselves at liberty to increase their naval arma-
ment upon the Ukes, if they shall find that proceeding necessary.
The condition of the border will necessarily come into consider-
ation in connection with the question of continuing or modifying
the righte of transit from Canada through the United States, as
well as the regulation of imposts, which were temporarily estab-
lished by the Reciprodty Treaty of the 5th of June, 1864. I
desire, however, to be understood while making this statement,
that the colonial authorities are not deemed to be intentionally
unjust or unfriendly towards the United States, but, on the
contrary, there is every reason to expect that with the approval
of the imperial govemmeut, Ihey will take the necessary meas-
nres to prevent new incursions acmes the border.
The Act passed at the last session for the encouragement of
emigration has, as far as was possible, been put into operation.
It seems to need an amendment which will enable the officers
of the Government to prevent the practice of frauds against the
immigrants while on their way and on their arrival in the ports,
so as to secure them here a free choice of avocations and places
of settlement. A liberal disposition towards this great national
policy is manifested by most of the European states, and ought
to be reciprocated on our part by giving the immigrants effect-
ive national protection. I regard our immigrants as one of
the principal replenishing streams which are appointed by
Providence to repair the ravages of internal war, and its wastes
of national strength and health. All that is necessary is to
secure the flow of that stream in its present fullness, and to that
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1518 LIFE AKD TIMES OF
end the Gh>v«niineiit most, in everj wajr, make it mauifeat
that it neither needs nor deei^e to impose iiivtduntary military
service upon those who come from other lands to ceat their Int
in our country.
The finaucial aflairs of the GoTemment have been suocess-
fully administered during the last year. The I^islation nf the
last sesuon of Oongres has beneficially affected the revenues,
altbou|^ sufficient time has not yet elapeed to experience the
full effect of several of the provisiouB of the acts of Congress
imposing increased taxation.
The receipts during the year, from all sources, upon the
basis of warrants signed by the Secretary of the Treasury, in-
cluding loans and the balance in the Treasury on the first day
of July, 1863, were one billion three hundred and ninety-four
million seven hundred and ninety-six thousand and seven dol-
lars and sixty-two cenla ; and the aggregate disbursements, upon
tlie same basis, were one billion two hundred and ninety-eight
million fifty-six thousand one hundred and one dolbn and
eighty-nine cents, leaving a balance in the Treasury, as shown
by warrants, of ninety-six million ee\-en hundred and thirty-
nine thousand nine hundred and five dollars and seventy-three
cents.
Deduct from these amounts the amount of the principal of
the public debt redeemed, and the<amount of issues in subetitu-
Uon therefor, and the actual cash operations of the Treasury
were : receipts, eight hundred and eighty-four million seventy-
six thousand ux hundred and forty-tax dollars and fiffy-eeven
cents; disbursements, eight hundred and sixty-five million two
hundred and thirty-four thousand and eighty-seven dollars and
eighty-six centa; which leaves a cash balance in the Treasury
of eighteen million eight hundred and forty-two thousand five
hundred and fifly-eight dollars and seventy-one cents.
Of the receipts, there were derived from customs one hun-
dred and two million three hundred and rixteen, thousand one
hundred and fifty-two dollars and ninety-nine cents; from lands,
five hundred and eighty-eight thousand three hundred and
thirty-three dollars and twenty-nine cents j from direct taxes,
four hundred and seventy-five thousand six hundred and forty-
eight dollars and ninety-ux cents ; fVom internal revenue, one
ov Google
AfiBAHAM LINCOLN. 519
hundred and nine million seven himdred and forty-one thousand
one hundred and thirty-four dollars and ten cents; fVom ini»-
cellaneoiu sources, forty-eeven million five hundred and eleren
Uiousand four hundred and forty-eight dollars and ten cents;
and fW)m loans applied to actual expenditures, including former
balance, six hundred and twenty-three million four hundred
and forty-three thousand nine buudred and twenty-nine dollars
and thirteen cents.
There were disbursed, for the civil service, twenty-seven
million five hundred and five thousand five hundred and nine-
ty-nine dollars and forty-six cents; for penaons and Indians,
seven million five hundred and seventeen thousand nine hun-
dred and thirty dollars and ninety-seven cents; for the War
Department, six hundred and ninety million seven hundred
and ninety-one thousand eight hundred and forty two dollars
and ninety-seven cents ; for the Navy Department, eighty-five
million seven hundred and thirty-three thousand two hundred
and ninety-two dollars and seventy-seven cents; for interest of
' the public debt, fifty-three million six hundred and eightf-five
thousand four hundred and twenty-one dollars and mxty-nine
cents — making an aggregate of eight hundred and sixty-five
million two hundred and thirty-four thousand and eighty-seven
dollars and eighty-six cents, and leaving a balance in the Treas-
ury of eighteen million dght hundred and for^-two thousand
five hundred and fiAy-eight dollars and seventy-one cents, as
before stated.
For the actual receipts and disbursements for the first quar-
ter, and the estimated receipts and disbursements ft>r the tiiree
remaining quarters of the current fiscal year, and the general
operations of the Treasury in detail, 4 refer yon to the report
of the Secretary of the Treasury. I concur with him in the
opinion that the proportion of moneys required to meet the ex-
penses consequent upon the war derived from taxation should
be still further increased ; and I earnestly invite your attention
to this subject, to the end that there may be such additional leg-
islation as shall be required to meet the just expectations of the
Secretary.
The public debt on the first day of July last, as appears by
the books of the Treasury, amounted to one billion seven hun-
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LIFE AND TIMES OF
and forty million six buadred and niooty thousand four
red and eight-nioe dollars and forty-nine cents. Probably,
d the war continue for another year, that amount may be
ised by not &r from five hundred milliond. Held as it is
le most part by our ovn people, it baa become a Bubetantial
h of national though private property,
or obvious reasons, the more nearly this property can be
buted among al] the people, the better. To favor such a
al dititributJoD, greater inducements to become owners
:, perhaps, with good efiectand without injury, be presented
^sons of limited means. With this view, I suggest whether
;bt not he both expedient and competent for Congress to
je tbat a limited amount of some future issue of public
ties might be held by any bona Jide purchaser exempt
taxation and from seizure for debt, under such restrictJons
imitation as might be necessary to guard against abuse of
portant a privilege. This would enable prudent persons to
ide a small amount against a poeuble day of want,
rivileges like these would render the poesession of such
ties to the amount limited most desirable to every person
all means, who might be able to save enough for the pur-
The great advantage of citizens being creditors as well
[>tors, with relation to the public debt, is obvious. Men
y perceive tbat they can not be much oppressed by a debt
I they owe to themselves.
le public debt on the first day of JuJy last, although some-
exceeding the estimate of the Secretary of the Treasury
to Congress at the commencement of last session, falls
of the estimate of that officer made in the succeeding
nber as to its probable amount at the beginning of ihis
by the sum of three million nine hundred and nmety-five
and and seventy-nine dollars and thirty-three cente. This
ixhibits a satisfactory condition and conduct of the opera-
of the Treasury.
lie national banking system is proving to be acceptable to
ilists and to the people. On the 25Ui day of November
lundred and eighty-four national banks hod been organized,
dderable number of which were conversions from State
I. Changes from the State system to the national system
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ABRAHAM UNCOLN. S2l
an rapidly taking place, and it is hoped tiiat very aoaa there
viU be in the United States do banks of issue not authorized by
Congress, and no bank-note circulation not secured by the Gov-
ernment. That the Government and the people will derive
general benefit from this change in the banking systems of the
cooDtry can hardly be questioned. The national system will
create a retiable and permanent influence in support of the
national credit and protect the people against losses in the uae
of paper money. Whether or not any further legislation is ad-
visable for the suppression of State bank iaeues, it will be for
Congress to determine. It aeems quite clear that the Treasury
can not be satjafactorily conducted unless the Government can
exercise a restraining power over the bank-note circulation of
the country.
The report of the Secretary of War and the accompanying
documents will detaD the campaigns of the armies in the field
siDce the date of the last annual message, and also the opera-
tions of the several Administrative bureaus of the War Depart-
ment during the last year. It will also specify the measures
deemed essential for the national defense, and to keep up and
BU|^Iy the requisite military force.
The report of the Secretary of the Navy presents a compre*
beorive and salie&ctory exhibit of the afiairs of that Departr
ment, and of the naval service. It is a subject of congratulation
and laudable pride to our countrymen, that a navy of such vast
proportions has been organized in eo brief a period, and con-
ducted with so much effidency and success.
The general exhibit of tlie navy, including vessels under
oonstriiction on the first of December, 1864, shows a total of six
hundred and seventy-one vessels, carrying four thousand ux
hundred and ten guns and five hundred and ten thousand three
hundred and Dinety-six tons, being an actual increase during
the year over and above all losses by shipwreck or in battle, of
dgbty-three vesseb, one hundred and sixty-seven guns, and
forty-two thousand four hundred and twenty-seven tons. The
total number of men at this time in the naval service, including
officers, is about fifty-one thousand. There have been captured
by the navy during the year, three hundred and twenty-four
vessels, and the whole number of naval captures since hostjli-
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I lAFE AND TIMES OF
commenced a oae thousand three liuDdred and seventy-
e, of which two hundred and sizty-eeTen are ateamen. The
w proceeds aristog from the sale of cundemned priie prop-
r thus &r reported, amount to fourteen million three hundred
1 ninety-six tiiounnd two hundred and fifty dollars and fifty-
cents. A large amount of such proceeds is still under adju-
itioD, and yet to be reported. The total expeuditurea of the
vy Department, of every description, including the cost of
imniense squadrons that have been called into existence
n the 4th of March, 1861, to the fint of November, 1864,
two hundred and ^irtyeight million six hundred and
:y-seven thousand two hundred and sixty-two doUars and
■ty-five cents.
Your &vorabIe consideration is invited to the various
immendatiooB of the Secretary of the Navy, eepecially in
srd to a navy-yard and suitable establishment fur the con-
ictjoa and repair of iron yessels, and the machinery and
lature for our ships, to which reference was made in my last
lual message. Your attention is also invited to the views
iressed in the report in rdation to the legislation of Congren
ts last session in respect to prize on our inland waters.
I cordially concur in the recommendation of the Secretary
to the propriety of creating the new rank of vice-admiral in
naval service.
Your attention is invited to the report of the Postmaster-
leral for a detailed account of the operations and fioandal
dition of the Post-office Department.
Tbe postal revenues for the year ending June 30, 1864,
>unted to twelve million four himdred and thirty-eight thou-
il two hundred and fifty-three dollars and seventy-eight
ts, and the expenditures to twelve raiiiion six hundred and
y-four thousand seven hundred and eighty-eix dollars and
nty cents; the excess of expenditures over receipts being
hundred aod six thousand ax hundred and fifty-two dollars
forty-two cents.
The views presented by the Postmaster-Oeneral on the snb-
: of special grants by tbe Government in aid of the estab-
ment of new lines of ocean miul steam-sbipe, ajid the policy
recommends for the development of increased oommercial
ovGoO'^lc
ABRAHAM UNOOLN. 523
intorcoane with Bdjaoeiit ftii<I nogtiboring countries, should
receive the careful ootuideration of CoDgress.
It ia of noteworthy intereet that the steady expansion of
populatiuu, improvement, and Governmental Institutjons ovw
the new and onoooapied portions of our country have scarcely
been checked, much less impeded or destroyed by our great
CSvil War, which, at first glance, would seem to hsva abaorbed
almost the entire energiee of the MaUon.
The urganizatioD and admission of the State of Nevada has
been completed, in coDfonnity with law, and thus our excellent
system is firmly established io the mountains which once
seemed a barren and uninhabitable waste between the Atlaotio
States and those which have grown up on the coast of the
Pacific Ocean.
Tlie Territories of the Union are generally in a condition of
prosperity and growth. Idaho and Montana, by reason of their
great distance and the interruption of communication with them
by Indian hoatilities, have been only partially organized ; but it
is understood that these difficulties are about to disappear, which
will permit their governments, like those of the others, to go
into speedy and full operation.
As intimately connected with, and promotive of this mate-
rial growth of the Nation I ask the attention of CongrefiB to the
valuable informatiou and important reoommendations relating
to the public lands, Indian aSairs, the Pacific lUilroad, and
mineral discoveries contained in the report of the Secretary of
the Interior, which is herewith transmitted, and which report
also embraces the subjects of patents, pensions, and other topics
of public interest pertaining to hb I>epartment.
The quantity of public land disposed of during the five
quarters, ending on the 30th of September last, was four mill-
ion two hundred and twenty-one thousand three hundred and
forty-two acrea, of which one million five hundred and thirty-
eight thousand dx hundred and fourteen acres were entered
under the Homestead Law. The remainder was located with
military land-warrants agricultural scrip certified to States for
railroads, and sold for cash. The cash received from sales and
location fees was one million nineteen thou^d four hundred
and forty-^ dollars.
ovGoo'^lc
624 LIFE AHD TIMES OF
The income from Bales during the fiscal year ending June
30, 1864, vas six hundred aod seventy-eight thousand and
seven ijollan and twenty-one centa, against one hundred and
thirty-nx thousand and seventy-fieven dollars and ninety-five
cents received during the preceding year. The aggregate num-
ber of acres surveyed during the year has been equal to the
quantity disposed of; and there is open to settlement about one
hundred and thirty-three million acres of surveyed land.
The great enterprise of connecting the Atlantic with the
Pacific States by railways and telegraph lines has been entered
upon with a vigor that gives assurance of success, notwithstand-
ing the embarrassments arising from the prevailing high prices
of materials and labor. The route of the main tine of the road
has been definitely located for one hundred miles westward from
the initial point at Omaha City, Nebraska, and a preliminary
location of the Pacilic Raiiroad of California has been made
from Sacramento eastward to the great bend of the Truckee
Stiver, in Nevada.
Numerous discoveries of gold, rilver, and dnnabar mines
have been added to the many heretofore known, and the country
occupied by the Sierra Nevada and Rocky Mountains, and the
subordinate ranges, now teems with enterprising labor, which ia
richly remunerative. It is believed that the product of the
mines of precious metals in that region has, during the year,
reached, if not exceeded, one hundred millions in value.
It was recommended in my last annual message that our
Indian system be remodeled. Congress, at its last session,
acting upon the recommendation, did provide tar reorgaaiziog
the system in California, and it is believed that under the pres*
ent organization the management of the Indians there will be
attended with reasonable success. Much yet remuos to be done
to provide for the proper government of the Indians in other
ports of the country to render it secure for the advancing
settler, and to provide for the welfare of the Indian. The Secre-
tary reiterates his recommendations, and to them the attrition
uf Congress is invited.
The liberal provirions made by Congress for paying pensions
to invalid soldiers and sailors of the Republic, and to the
widows, orphans, and dependent mothers of those who have
ovGoO'^lc
ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 625
fkllen in battle or died of disease contracted, or of wonnde re-
^ceived in the service of their country, have been diligently
adminiBtered. There have been added to the pennon rolls
during the year ending the 30th day of June laBt, the names
of sixteen thousand seven hundred and seventy invalid soldiers,
and of two hundred and seventy-one disabled seamen, making
the present number of army invalid pensioners, twenty-two
thousand seven hundred and sixty-seven, and of navy in-
valid pensioners, seven hundred and twelve. Of widows,
orphans, and mothers, twenty-two thousand one hundred and
ninety-eight have been placed on the army pension rolls, and
two hundred and. forty-eight on the navy rolls. The present
number of army pensioners of this class is twenty-five thousand
fijur hundred and thirty-three, and of navy pensioners, seven
hundred and ninety-three. At the be^nning of the year the
number of Revolutionary pensionen was one thousand four
hundred and thirty. Only twelve of them were soldiers, of
whom seven have since died. The remainder are those who,
under the law, receive penaons because of relationship to Bevo-
Intionary soldiers. During the year ending the 30th of June,
1864, fonr million five hundred and fiiur tbousaud nx hundred
and rixteen dollars and ninety-two cents have been paid to
pensioners of all classes.
I cheerfully commend to your continued patronage the
benevolent institutions of the District of Columbia, which have
hitherto been established or fostered by Congress, and respect-
fully refer for information concerning them, and in relation to
the Washington Aqueduct, the Capitol, and other matters of
local interest, to the report of the Secretary,
The Agricultural Department, under the supervision of its
present energetic and fitithful bead, is rapidly commending
itself to the great and vital interest it was created to advance.
It is peculiarly the people's Department, in which they feel
more directly concerned than in any other. I commend it to
the continued attention and fostering care of Congreea.
The war continues. Since the last annual message all the
important lines and positions then occupied by our forces have
been maintalDed, and our armies have steadily advanced, thus
liberating the re^ons left in the rear, so that Missouri, Keo-
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526 LIFE AND TIMES OF
tacVj, Tenaeesee, and parts of other Stutee have agun pro-
duced reaeooablf fair crops.
The most remarkable feature in the military opemtioOB of
the year is Qeneral Sherman's attempted march of three hun-
dred miles directly through the insurgent r^ion. It tends to
show a great increase of onr relative strength, that our Gen-
eral-in-Chief should feel ahle to confront and hold io check
every active force of the enemy, and yet to detach a wdt-
appointed, large army to move on such an expedition. The
result not yet being knonn, conjecture in regard to it is not
here iodulged.
Important movements have also occurred during tiie year
to the effect of molding society for durability in the Union ;
although short of complete Buccess, it is so much in the right
direction, that twelve thousand citizens in each of the States of
Arkansas and Louisiana have organized loyal State govern-
ments with free constitutions, and are earnestly struggling to
maintun and administer them. The movement in the same
direction, more extensive though less definite, iu Missouri, Ken-
tucky and Tennessee, should not be overlooked. But Mary-
land presents the example of complete success. Maryland u
secure to liberty and union for all the future. The genius of
rebellion will no more claim Maryland. Like another foul
spirit, being driven out, it may seek to tear her, but it will rule
her no more.
At the last session of Gongrees, a proposed amendment of
the Constitution abolishing slavery ijiroughout the TTnited
States, passed the Senate, but feiled for lack of the requisite
two-thirds vote in the House of Representatives. Although the
present is the same Congreae, and without questioning the
wisdom or patriotism of those who stood in opposition, I venture
to recommend the consideration and passage of the measure at
the present eeaslon.
Of course tiie abstract question is not changed, but an inter-
vening election shows almost certainly that the next Cougren
will pass the measure if this does not. Hence there is only a
question of time as to when the proposed amendment will go to
tiie States for their action, and as it is to go at all events, may
we not s^ree that the sooner the better. It is not claimed that
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ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 527
the election has impoud r duty on members to change their
views or their votes any farther than ae an addition&l element
to be considered. Their judgment may be affected by it It
is the voice of the people now for the first time heard upon the
question. In it great national criBis like oun, unanimity of
actjon among those seeking a common end is very desirable,
almost indispeniable, and yet no approach to such unanimity is
attainable unlesa some deference shall be paid to the will of
the majority, simply because it is the will of the majority. In
this case the common end is the maintenance of the Union,
and among the means to secure that end, such vrill, through
the election, is moflt clearly declared in favor of such Constitu-
tional amendment.
The most reliable indication of public purpose in diis
country is derived through our popular elections. Judging t^
the recent canvass and its result, the purpose of the people,
within the loyal States, to maintain the integrity of the Union,
was never more firm nor more nearly unanimous than now.
The extraordinary calmness and good order with which the
millions of voters met and mingled at the polls, give strong as-
surance of this. Not only those who supported tlie "Union
ticket " (so-called), but a great majority of the opposing party
abo may be fiurly claimed to entertnin and to be actuated by
the same purpose. It is an unanswerable argument to this
effect that no candidate fbr euy office whatever, high or low,
has ventured to seek votes on the avowal that he was for giving
up the Union.
There has been much heated oontroveny as to the proper
means and best mode of advandng the Union cause, but in the
' distinct issue of Union or no Union, the politicians have shown
their instinctive knowledge that there is no diverrity among
the people. In aBbrding- the people a fair opportunity of show-
ing one to another, and to the world, this firraneea and una-
nimity of purpose, the election has been of vast value to the
national cause,
He election has exhibited another &ct not less valuable to
be known ; the fiict that we do not approach exhaustion in the
most important branch of the national resources, that of living
men. While it is melancholy to reflect that the war has filled
ovGoO'^lc
528 UFE AND TIMES OF
■o many gnives uid carried moumtng to so man^ hearts, it is
some relief to know that, compared with the Burviviog, the
&llen have been so few. While corps and divinons, and
brigades and r^menta, have formed and fbaght, aod dwindled
and gone out of existence, a great majority of the men wbo
composed them are still living. The same ii true of the naval
service. The election returns prove this. So maaj voters
could not else be found. The States regularly holduig dec-
tions, both now and four yeaifl ago — to wit, California, Con*
necticut, Delaware, lUiooie, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Maine,
Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Miaaouri, New
Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Oregon, Pennsyl-
vania, Rhode Island, Vermont, West Virginia, and Wisoonsiu —
cast Uiree million nine hundred and eighty-two thousand and
deven votes now against three million eight hundred and
seventy thousand two hundred and twenty-two cast then, diow-
ing an aggregate now of thirty-three million nine hundred
and eighty-two thousand and eleven, to which is to be added,
thirty-three thousand seven hundred and sixty-two cast now in
the new States of Kansas and Nevada, whidi did not vote in
1860. Thus swelling the aggr^ate to four million fifteen
thousand seven hundred and seventy- three, and the net increase
during the three years and a half of war, to one hundred and
forty-five thousand seven hundred and fifty-one.
To this, ^^n, should be added the number of oil soldiers
in the field from Massadmsetts, Rhode ^and. New Jersey,
Delaware, Indiana, IlliDoie, and California, wbo, by the laws of
those States, could not vote away from tb^r homes, and which
number can oot be less than ninety thousand. Nor yet is this
all. The number in organized Territories is triple now what it
was four years ago, while thousands, white and black, join us
as the national arms press hack the insut^nt lines. So much
is shown affirmatively and negatively by the election.
It is not material to inquire how the increase has been pro-
duced, or to show that it would have been greater but for the
war, which is probably true; the important feet remains demon-
strated that we have more men now than we hod when the war
b^an ; that we are not exhausted, nor in process of exhaus-
tion; that we are gaining strength, and may, if need be, main-
ovGoo'^lc
[-
ABRAHAM LINOOLK. 529
tain the ooat«8t indefinitely. This as to men. N'atural- r&-
Muroea an qow more complete and abundant than ever. TbiB
national resources, then, are anezhausted, and, we believe, io-
exhaoatible. The public purpose to re-estahliah and maintaiii
die national authority is unchanged, and, as we believe, uu-
diaageable. The manner of coDtiDuing the e£fbrt remains
to cboose.
On careful coDsideradrai of all the evidence accessible, it
seems to me that no attempt at negodation with the iDsurgent
leader could result in any good. He would accept of Dothing
short of the severance of tbe Union- His declarations to this
effect are ezplidt and oft-repeated. He doee Dot attempt to
deceive us. He affords us no excuse to deceive ourselves. We
can not voluntarily yield it. Between him and ns tbe issue is
distinct, simple, and inflexible. It is an issue wbicb can only
be tried by war, and decided by victory. If we yield we are
beaten; if the Southern people &al him, he is beaten; either
way it would be the victory and defeat following war. What
is true, however, of him who heads the insurgent cause, is not
neceasarily true of thoee who follow. Although he can not
reaccept the Union, they can. Some of them, we know, al-
ready desire peace and reunion. The number of euoh may in-
crease. They can at any moment have peace simply by laying
down their arms, and submitting to tbe national authority
under the Constitution. After so much, the Qovemment could
not, if it would, maintain war against them. The loyal people
would not sustain or allow it. If questions should remain, we
would adjust them by the peaceful means of legislation, courts,
and voles.
Operating only in Constitutional and lawftil channels, some
oertfun and other posnble questions are and would be beyond
the Executive power to adjust ; for instance, tbe admission of
members into Congress, and whatever might require the ap-
propriation of money. The Executive power itself would be
really diminished by the cessation of actual war. Pardons and
lemisnons of forfeiture, however, would still be within Execu-
tive control. In what spirit and temper this control would be
exercised, can be fiiirly judged of by tbe past. A year ago
general pardon and amnesty upon specified terms were offered
S4— 0
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530 UFE AND TIMES OF
to all «xoept oertabi designated claeees, and it was at Ote same
time made known that the excepted dames were still within
contemplation of special clemenc;. During the ^ear many
availed tbemaelvea of the general provtBion, and many more
would, only that the sgos of bad faith in some led to such
precautionary measures as rendered the practical procew lest
easy and certain. During the same time, also, special pardons
have been granted lo individuals of excepted classes, and no
voluntary application has been denied. Thus, practically, the
door has been for a full year open to all, except such as were
not in condition to make free choice ; that is, such as were in
custody or under constraint. It is stiU so open to all, but the
time may come, probably will come, when public duty shall
demand that it be closed, and that in lieu more rigorous meas-
ures than heretofore shall be adopted.
In presenting the abandonment of armed resistance to the
nationid authority, on the part of tlie insurgents, as the only
indispensaUe condition to ending the war on the part of the
Government, I retract nothing heretofore said as to slavery.
I repeat the declaration made a year ago, that, while I remain
in my present position, I shall not attempt to retract or modify
tlie Emancipation Proclamation. Mor shall I return to slavery
any person who is free by the terms of that ProclamadoD, or
by the acte of Congress.
If the people should, by whatever mode or means, make it
an Executive duty to re-enslave such persons, another, and not
I, must be tbeir instrument to perform it In staUng a single
condition of peace, I mean nmply to ssy, that the war will
cease on the part of the (rovemment whenever it shall have
ceased on the part of those who began it.
During this short session, closing on the 3d of
March, 1865, the following more important acts were
passed and became laws : To establish the office of
Vice-Admiral in the Navy, ranking with Lieutenant-
General in the Army ; to require lawyers admitted
to practice in the Supreme Court, and the circuit
and district courts of the United States to take the
ovGoO'^lc
ABRAHAM UNCOLK. 631
oath of allegiance, approved in 1862; an act to pre-
veat military and naval officers interfering in eleo-
tions except to preserve the peace ; and to establish
the " Freedmen's Bureau." Bnt th^ only really im-
portant act of this session was that providing for an
amendment to the Constitution forbidding slavery in
the United States.
At an early date in the previous session this
matter had been brought before Congress, and fully
discassed in all its bearings with the usual rancor,
extravagance, and folly which had been the insepara-
ble accompaniment of all attempts in Congress to
handle the subject of slavery. There was the usuid
amount of talk about Ood and Canaan, and slavery
being the Heaven-decreed and normal position of the
colored race ; and Mr. Hendricks, of Indinna, rean-
nounced the wonderful doctrine that the Government
of the United States had nothing to do with the
moral question of human slavery. However, the act
providing for the amendment had hut six dissenting
votes in the Senate. In the House it failed of get-
ting the necessary two-liiirds vote.
Early in the present session, according to the
recommendation of the President's Message, a motion
was made to reconsider the action of the House in
the previous summer, and again the discussion of the
almost dead " institutioD " began. Nor was it much
less virulent than it had been before secession, so-
called, took away the hot-beaded defenders of slavery
from the far South. The advocates of the institu-
tion wei;^ not wanting in Congress, the North fur-
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LIFE AND TIMES OP
ing the greater part of them. Of one of these
ddeuB Stevens said : " When we all molder in
dust ; he may have his epitaph written, if it be
J written, Here rests the ablest and most pertt-
Qua defender of shtTery, and opponent of liberty."
finally otr the last day of January, 1865, the
itioD on reconsidering the former action of the
so was carried by a vote of one hundred and
ve yens against filty-seven nays.- And then the
t resolution of the former session, providing for
mendment of the Constitution doing away with
}ry, was passed by one hundred and nineteen
against fifty-six nays, D. W. Voorhees, of In-
a, and seven others not voting. A majority of
i)order State Representatives voted for the meas-
as did a number of Democrats from various
I of the Union, but all the nays and the eight
voting were Demoorats.
Lmidst the wildest demonstrations of joy on the
of the friends of the measure, Ebon C Ingersoll,
linois, said : " In honor of this immortal and sub-
event, I move that the House adjotim." And
House did adjourn, ringing with the triumphant
ts of the friends of liberty. Thns Congress had
bed its share in the overthrow of human slavery,
^nd achievement of the age. And in good, time
I than two-thirds of the States sanctioned the
icipatioQ acts of the Administration, and this
ning act of Congress, Uie amendment forever
ibitlng slavery in the United States becoming a
of the Constitution.
ovGoO'^lc
ABRAHAM LINCOLN.
CHAPTER XXIII.
WAR OF THE REBELLION—OVERTURES FOR PEACE-
MR, BLAIR AND JEFFERSON DAVIS^^MR. LIN-
COLN'S SECOND INAUGURAL.
LATE in 1864 Mr. Lincoln gave F. P. Blair, Sen
B pennit to pass through the army to go t
RichmoDd. This old political busybody was in
pressed with the notion that he was the possessc
of a plan for the restoration of the Union withon
further bloodshed. Mr. Lincoln had full confidenc
in Mr. Blair's patriotism, but would not even liste
to his views touching hia visit to Jefferson Davii
The President had announced in his last annni
message the only terms on which he would ever coi
sent to a suspension of the war — that the rebel
should lay down their arms and return to thei
allegiance to the Government. This had alway
been Mr. Lincoln's position, and few persons knei
it better than Francis P. Blait, Sen. Early in Jam
ary Mr. Blair succeeded in reaching Richmond, an
holding a long conversation with the rebel executivt
In his account of the interview Mr. Davis treats th
whole matter in the light of a very grave condescet
sion on his part toward this old politic^al associate
Bat Mr. Blair made amends, to some extent, by hi
good conduct, his earnestness as to some preliminar
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LIFE AND TDfES OF
for peace, and his kind and flatfermg expres-
touching his own Southern blood, and ao on.
)ropo3ition was that military hostilities should
iispended on the simple understanding, and
ng more, that the attention of the armies and
vhole people should be turned to the mainte-
) of " The Monroe Doctrine " against France in
CO. This being done, in the meantime, Mr.
seemed to believe the wounds of the domestic
iFould somehow be healed, and the Union re-
1. Although his judgment was at fault in this
i business, there can be no question about Mr.
's good intentions and piitriotism. He was quite
;ular in assuring Mr. Davis that he was acting
)ty on his own responsibility, while he took
pains to uige the belief that the President
] treat his plan with favor,
avis dismissed him with this letter to himself : —
ilB, — I have deemed it proper, and probably desir-
o you, to give you in this form the substance of
ka made by me, to be repeated by you to President
Id, etc.
[ have DO disposition to find obstacles in forms, and
llliDg DOW, as heretofore, to eoter ioto negotiations
e restoration of peace ; am ready to send a commis-
henever I have reasOD to suppose it will be received,
receive a commissioD, if the United States Govem-
shall choose to send one.
["hat, Dotwithatanding the rejectioo of our former
I would, if you could promise that a commissioner,
er, or agent would be received, appoint one imme-
ovGoO'^lc
ABRAHAM UNGOLN. 535
AiattHy, and renew the effort to enter into oonferenm vith
a view to secure peaoe to the two coantries.
" Yours, etc., Jefferson Davis."
The trae character of this artful letter is revealed
in the two last words, two countries. Two coantries
the Administration and the loyal North could never
acknowledge, and that was well known.
With almost inexhaustible resources, and the en-
thusiasm of the people rising as it now became more,
appnrent duUy that the Rebellion was speedily falling
to pieces, a mere fantasy could have led any sane
man to suppose any terms but unconditional surren-
der would be accepted from the rebels. And so Mr.
Lincoln wrote in answer to this letter designed for
the eye of the rebel chief: —
" WAflKiHOTOH, January 18, 1865.
"F. P. Blair, Esq.:—
Sib, — You having shown me Mr. Davis's letter to you
of the 12th inst., you may say to him that I have oon-
etantly been, am now, and shall continue ready to receive
any agent whom he, or any other influential person now
resisting the national authority, may informally send to
me witb a view of securing peace to the people of our one
common country. Yours, etc., A. Lincoln."
With this Mr. Blair again visited Richmond, and
in his interview with Jefferson Davis, took occasion
to call his attention to the expression our one common
country in the President's letter, and the object of its
nse. Mr. Davis was then frank enough to say that
be recognized its purpose of counteracting the words
two countries in his letter. Mr. Blair got among hia
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LIFE AND TIMES OF
friends while on this visit to Richmond, and lost
opportunity to assure them of the hopelessness
their cause. In his strange book on the " Rise
Fall of the Confederate Goverament," Mr. Davis '
b: —
'Mr. Bl&ir had Drany acquaintances among the mem-
I of the Confederate Congress ; and all those of the
i, who, of old, fled to the cave of AduUam, ' gathered
Qselves unto him.'"
Davis now consulted with Alexander H. Stephens
others, and concluded to send commissioners to
,t with President Lincoln, in (he vain hope that
might be induced to take up with Mr. Blair's
position AS to the enforcement of " The Monroe
itrine," which in some way would in the end turn
he great advantage of the Southern cause.
In a letter to Charles Francis Adams Mr. Seward
e this account of the meeting and its result : —
" DKPjtBTUBMT or Statr, Wabhinoton City, >
" February 7, 1865. f
'Sm, — It ia a truism that in times of peace there are
■jB inetjgatore of war. So soon as war begins there are cJti-
who impatientJy demand n^otiataoos for peace. The
icatee of war, after an agitation, longer or shorter, generally
their fearful end, though the war declared is not uufre-
itly unnecessary and unwiee. So peace agitators in time
rar ultimately bring about an abandooment of the conflict,
itimes without securing the advantages which were origi-
' expected &om the conflict.
' The agitators for war in time of peace, and for peace in
of war, are not necessarily, or perhaps ordinarily, unpa-
ic in their purpoeea or motivee. Beeults alone determine
l.her they are wise or unwise. The treaty of peace concluded
Dudalupe-Hidalgo, was secured by an irregular negotii^or
ovGoo'^lc
ABRAHAU LINCOLN. 537
under the bwi of Uie OoremmeiiL Some of the efibrtB wliich
have been made to briog about negotiations, with a view to
end our Civil War, are known to the whole world, because the^
have employed fbrdgn as well as domestic agents. OthwB,
with whom you have bad to deal confidentially, are known to
yourself, although they have not puUicly traospired. Other
efforts have occurred here which are known only to the persons
actually moving in them and to this Oovernment. I am now
to give, for your information, an account of an afiair of the
same general character, which recently received much attention
here, and whidi, doubtless, will excnte inquiry abroad.
" A few days ago Francis F. Blair, Esq., of Maryland, ob-
tained from the Fre«dent a cample leave to pass through our
military lines without definite views known to the Government.
Mr. Blair visited Richmond, and on his return he showed to
the President a letter which Jefferson Davis had written Co Mr.
Blair, in which Davis wrote that Mr. Blair was at liberty to
say to President Lincoln that Davis was now, as he always
had been, willing to send comniisBionerB if assured they would
be received, or to receive any that should be sent ; that*he was
not disposed to find obstacles in forme. He would send com-
misuoneiB to confer with the President with a view to a restora-
tion of peace between the two countries if he could be assured
they would be received. The President thereupon, on the IStji
of January, addressed a not« to Mr. Blair, in which the Fred-
dent, after acknowledging that he had read the note of Mr,
Davis, said that he was, is, and always should be, willing to
recdve any agents that Mr. Davis or any other influential per-
SOD, now actually resisting the authority of the Government,
might send to confer informally with the President, wiUi a view
to the restoration of peace to the peofJe of our one common
country. Mr. Blair visited Kichmond with this letter, and thea
again came back to Washington.
"On the 29tb ultimo we were advised from the camp at
Lieutenant-General Grant that Alexander H. Stephens, R M.
T. Hunter, and John A. Campbell were applying fer leave to
pass through the lines to Washington, as peace commissioners,
to confer with the Freudeut. They were permitted by the
Lieutenant-General to come to bis head-quarten, to awut thet«
ov Google
538 UFB AHD HUES OF
the deciuon of the FreeideiiL Uajor Eckert wm nut down to
meet the psrty from Richmond at General Grant's head-
qu&rten. The Major was directed to deliver to them a copy
of the Prendent'fl letter to Mr. Blair, with a note to be ad-
drened to them and signed bj the Major, in which the; were
directly ioformed that if tbey should be allowed to pan oor
Unee they would be understood as comiug for ao informal oon-
fereoce upon the basis of the aforenamed letter of the 18th of
January to Mr. Blair. If they should ezpreaa their assent to
this condition in writing, then Major Eckert was directed to
give tbem safe conduct to Fortreaa Monroe, where a person
coming fromthe President would meet them. It being thought
probable, &om a report of their couTersation with Lieutenant-
General Grant, that the Richmond party would, in the manner
prescribed, accept the condition mentioned, the Secretary of
State was charged by the President with the duty of represent-
ing this Government in the expected informal conference. The
Secretary arrived at Fortress Monroe in the night of the Istday
of February. Major Eckert met him in the morning of the 2d
of February, with the information that the persons who had
come from Richmond had not accepted in writing the condition
upon which he was allowed to ^ve them conduct to Fortren
Monroe. The Major had given the same information by tele-
graph to the President at Washington. On receiving this in-
formation the President prepared a telegram directing the Secre-
tary to return to Washington. The Secretary was preparing
at the same moment to so return, without wait^og for ioatruc-
dons from the President But at this juncture Lieutenant-
General Grant telegraphed to the Secoetary of War, aa wdl as
to the Secretary of State, that the party from Richmond had
reconridered and accepted the conditions tendered them through
Major Eckert; and General Grant urgently advised the Presi-
dent to confer in person with the Bicbmond party. Under
these circumstances, the Secretuy, by the Preadenfs directtoa,
remained at Fortress Monroe, and the Prewdent joined him
there on the night of the 2d of February. The RichrooDd
party was brought down the James River in a United States
steam transport duriug the day, and tlto transport was
anchored in Hampton Roads.
ovGoO'^lc
ABRAHAM LINCOLN.
" On tlie morning of the 3d, the Prewdent, Rttend
Secretary, received Meaars. Stephens, Hunter, and Ca
board the United States steam transport Rtoer Queen,
ton Roads. The conference waa altogether iuformt
vas no attendance of Becretariee, clerks, or other
Kothing was written or read. The couTersation,
earnest and iree, was calm, and oourteouB, and kio'
ndee. The Richmond party approached the discussi'
indirectly, and at no time did they either make cat^
manda, or tender formal stipulations or absolute
Mevertbelees, during the conference, which lasted f(
the several points at issue between the Govemmen
insurgents were distJnctly raised, and discussed full
gently, and in an amicable spirit. What the inBur|
seemed chiefly to favor was a postponement of the qi
separation, upon which the war is waged, and a mui
lion of efforts of the Government, as well as those '
nirgents, to some extrinsic policy or scheme for a seaa
which pasdons might be expected to subside, and ti
be reduced, and trade and intercourse between the
both sections resumed. It waa suggested by them the
such postponement we might now have immediate p<
some not very certain prospect of an ultimate satisfi
justment of political relations between this Goyeri
the States, section, and people now engaged in conflii
"The suggesdon, though deliberately considered, ^
theless regarded by the President as one of armistice
and he announced that we can agree to no cessation
rion of hostilities except on the basis of the disban
tiie insurgent forces and the restoration of the nation
ity throughout all the States in the Union. Collate
in subordination to the proposition which was thus a
the anti-slavery policy of the United States was revie
ita bearings, and the President announced that he m
expected to depart fkim the portions he had ben
sumed in his Proclamation of Bmancipation and o
meuts, as these positions were reiterated in his la
message. It was further declared by the Presiden
complete resteration of the national authority eveiji
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LIFE AND TIUES OF
idlspenMiUe oondition of anj aBBent on onr part to irliat-
form of peftce might be propoied, He Preudent aaured
tther party that while he must adhere to these podtioiis,
rould be prepared, so &r as power is lodged with the
iudve, to exerciae liberality. Its power, however, is
ed by the Constitudon ; aod when peace ehall be made,
rreae miut DecesBarily act in regajrd to appropriatioiis of
>y and to tlw adinission of represeDtatives from the iniur-
joary Btat£s. The Ricbmond party were tbea informed
Congress bad, on the 31st ultimo, adopted, by a Conetitu-
1 majority, a joint resolution submitting to the sereral
s the propoution to abolish slavery throughout the Union ;
that there is every reason to expect tliat it will be soon
>ted by three-fourths of the States, so as to bectMue a part
e national organic law.
' The cooferenoe came to an end, by mutual acquieeoenoe,
>ut producing any agreement of views upon the several
era discussed, or any of tliem. Nevertheless, it is perhaps
ime importance that we have been able to submit our
ons and views directly to prominent insuigents, and to
them .in answer, in a courteous and not ,un&iendly
ler. I am, air, yoor obedient servant,
" WiLUAX H. Sbwabd."
rbis conference lasted for seTeral hours, the Pres-
t and Mr. Stephens doing most of the talking.
Stephens at the outlet brought up the common
rest on which the attention of the country might
Irected for a time, " The Monroe Doctrine," when
President very positively informed them that he
given no word of countenance or sanction to Mr.
r's scheme ahout sending an army to Mexico, and
red them that no hope must be entertained as to
assenting to the semblance, even of an armistice,
lOut the condition that it should he on the ground
be restoration of the Union.
ovGoO'^lc
ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 541
Oq ibis poiot the rebel agents bad no autbority to
negotiate; and only hoped in an artful scheme to
take advantage of the Goverament in a way that
might lead to their final iodepeadence. Mr, Ste-
phens saya in his wonderful book, '* Constitutional View
of the War between the States," that neither the
commissioners nor the rebel authorities hnd the re-
motest idea of sending any of the rebel army to aid
in expelling tiie French from Mexico. It could not
be spared. Before this "peace conference" ended,
Mr. Stephens suggested to the President that their
meeting might not be wholly fmitleas, if they could
arrange some satisfactory terms for a general ex-
change. And this was very soon afterwards done
under Ihe direction of General Grant, to the great
gratification of the whole country.
Two other good results were the immediate out-
come of tiiis conference. It convinced those at the
North, who would be convinced, that the rebel lead-
ers would submit to no terms which did not imply
their independence as a nation, and hence that the
Union could only be restored and maintained by de-
stroying the military power of the Rebellion. It
also served to divide further the already utterly hope-
less and divided rebels. A few days after bis return
to Richmond, Alexander H. Stephens gave np the
cause as lost, and sought his home in Georgia. Bnt
not BO with Jefferson Davis. He foolishly persisted
in appearing to believe that Mr. Lincoln had com-
mitted himself to Mr. Blair's scheme for peace, and
had treacherously changed his disposition on hearing
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LIFE AND TIMES OF
le fall of Fort Fisher, the last possible gateway
tie Rebellion to British supplies. Public meet-
were called in Richmond, and eveiy means taken
iflame and prolong the spirit of opposition and
Iq one of these Jefierson Davis said in a fiery
ch; "I would be willing to yield up everything
,ve on earth, and if it were possible, would shc-
3 my life a thousand times, before I woald suc-
b." But all this bluster amounted to nothing,
ihat very moment the Rebellion was cnimbting,
in less than two months he was a solitary fugitive,
[he morning of the 4th of March, 1865, was
:, rainy, and cold, but the President, tired and
my, was at the Capitol signing bills, and doing
te could to give effect to the last work of Gon-
3. The processioD to escort him, according to
om, from the White House, moved without him.
he Senate Chamber Andrew Johnson had taken
oath of office as Vice-President, and delivered an
ess. The clouds had broken away, and as the
weary President stepped upon the eastern por-
of the Capitol the sun burst upon his uncovered
I amidst the shouts of the great concourse of
T and sympathetic spectators around him.
]a a clear, but sad tone, he then delivered tllis
E* and remarkable
INAUGURAL ADDRESS.
'bllow-countbtuem, — At this second appearing to take
ath of the PresideDtoal office, there is less occasion for an
ided address than there was at first Then a statement of
irse to be pursued seemed very fitting and proper.
ovGoo'^lc
ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 543
Now, &t the ezpira^on of four yean, during which public
declarations have been constantly called forth on every point
and phase of the great contest which bUU absorbs the atteution
and eugroBses the energies of the Nation, little that is new could
be presented.
The progress of our arras upon which all else chiefly de-
pends, is as well known to the public as to myself, and it is, I
trust, reasonably satisfactory and encoura^ng to all. With high
hopes for the future, no prediction in regard to it is ventured.
On the occasion corresponding to this, four years ago, all
thoughts were anxiously directed to an impending civil war.
All dreaded it; all sought to avoid it
While the inaugural address was being delivered from this
place, devoted altogether to saving the Union without war,
insurgent ageuta were in the city seeking to destroy it without
war; eeekiug to dissolve the Union and divide the effects by
negotiation. Bath parties deprecated war, but one of them
would make war rather than let the Nation survive, and the
other would accept war rather than let it perish ; and the war
came.
One-eighth of the whole population were colored slaves, not
distributed generally over the Union, but localized in the
southern part of it
These slaves constituted a peculiar and powerful interest
All knew that this interest was somehow the cause of the war.
To strengthen, perpetuate, and extend this interest was the
object for which the insurgents would rend the Union by war,
while the Government claimed no right to more than restrict
the territorial enlargement of it.
Neither party expected &r the war the magnitude or the
duration which it has already attained. Neither anticipated
that the cause of the conflict might cease with, or even before
the conflict itself should cease. Each looked for an easier
triumph, and a result less fundamental and astounding.
Bath read the same Bible and pray to the same Qod, and
each invokes his aid against the other. It may seem strange
that any men should dare to ask a just Qod's assistance in
wringing their bread from the sweat of other men's faces ; but
let us judge not, that we may not be judged. Hie prayer of
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644
UFE AND TIMES OF
both ooald not be u»wered. Ilut of neither has be«a uiswered
fully, llie Almighty hts bis own purposes. " Woe nnto the
world becanse of ofleases, for it must needs be that oflenses
come: but woe unto the man by whom the offense comeHi." If
we shall suppose that American slavery is one of tbeee oflfenses
which, in the providence of God, must needs come, but which,
haviug continued through his appointed time, he now wills to
remove, and that he gives to boUi North and South this terrible
war as the woe due to those by whom the offense came, shall
we discern therem any departure fkim those divine attributes
which the believen in a living Qod always ascribe t» him J
Fondly do we hope, fervently do we pray, that tbis mighty
scourge of war may speedily pass away. Yet if God wills that
It continue until all the wealth piled by the bondman's two
hundred and fifty years {d* unrequited toil shall be sunk, and
until every drop of blood drawn with the lash shall be paid by
another drawn with the aword, as was said three thousand
years f^, so still it must be said, the judgments of the Lord
are true and righteous altogether.
With malice toward no one, with charity for all, with firm-
ness in the right as God gives us to see the right, let us strive
on to finish the work we are in, to bind up the Nation's wounds,
to care for him who shall have borne, the battle, wid for hiB
widow and bis orphans, to do all which may achieve and
cherish a joat and lasting peace among ourselves and with all
nationa
The religious tone of this nddress doubtlessly
startled some of Mr. Lincoln's Western friends ; and
the air of sadness that pervtided it was not foi^tten
sis weeks later when he had fallen beneath the
assassin's hand. Coming events had cast their
mystic shadow before. The circumstances had
never existed previously in tlie history of this
country to bring forth an inaugtrral address like this,
nor would it have been possible for any of Mr.
Lincoln's predecessors to produce such an address
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ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 646
even had the circamstanoes favored it. Mr. Lincoln's
political and ofiScial speeches and papers have in
them a directness, simplicity, and originality which
render them entirely unique in the political literature
of his age and country. They lacked some of the
poUsh and glitter, to say nothing of the verbosity,
displayed by many of the occupants of the Execu-
tive Chair, but if they lost anything in these respects
they made np for it in more enduriDg and admirable
qualities.
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UF£ AND TIMES OF
CHAPTER XXIV.
OF THE REBELLION— GRANT AND SHERMAN—
f MISTAKES— ATLANTA CAMPAIGN— RES AC A—
lW MOUNTAIN — DALTON — ATLANTA— STONE:-
ROM THE RAPIDAN TO PETERSBURG —THE
INESS— COLD HARBOR— HOOD IN TENNESSEE—
:,1N— NASHVILLE— SHERMAN BEGINS HIS WON-
. MARCH TO THE SEA.
rOFORE it bas been convenient and some-
1; necessary to trwit of military affairs sep-
eacb side of the Alleghany Mouataiiu;
in tbe spring of 1864 an event took place
the continuance of this plan' unlinportaat
;f view which the comparative size these
as already reached compels me to take,
tbe appointment of G-eneral Grant to corn-
entire army of the United States. The
tbe Anny of tbe Potomac to make any
[way against the rebel force wbicb opposed
e common lack of confidence in General
be Oeneral-in-Cbief, gave rise to a strong
T placing ihe direction of military concerns
ands. In order to relieve tbe case of any
and ancertainties, Congress revived tbe
entenant-General which bad been borne by
Washington only, and by General Scott by
ovGoO'^lc
ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 647
brevet; and tiiat the President shotild make do mis-
take in the man, Congress passed a resoIutioD recom-
mending th« appointment of Grant. But this caution
was anoecessary. Mr. Lincoln joined in the general
sentiment, and on the 2d of March, the day after the
act creating the office was finally passed and signed,
he sent to the Senate the name of General Grant.
On the 9th of March, 1864, in Washington, the
President delivered to Grant his commission as Lieu-
tenant-General, and without delay he set about the
task before him. Some of his acts had been severely
criticised, and there were not wanting those who be-
lieved that McGlellan, Buell, or somebody else, should
have been selected instead of this stubborn, silent sol-
dier. But be had been more successful than any other
genera), and it was well known that he was without
political bias. He took a soldier's view of the war,
believing there was but one thing for him to do,
crush the military strength of the Rebellion. This
WHS his faith and the principle which controlled his
conduct. "From the first I was firm in the convio*
tion that no peace coald be had that would be stable
and conducive to the happiness of the people, both
North and South, until the military power of the
Rebellion was entirely broken." This it was, after
he had started on his march to Richmond and fought
the great battle of the Wilderness, that took form in
his memorable expression : " I propose to fight it
out on this line if it takes alt summer."
The President and the people made no mistake
this time. The right man had been selected ; per-
ov Google
S48 LIFE AND TIMES OF
haps the oaly man known i'a the Nation fit to direefc
tiie military affairs of the war to a successful coa-
elusion. Under him one general plan yas at once
adopted for putting into active and constant opera-
tions the whole war force at the command of the
Qovernment, and directing it to one final point. Hav-
ing DO time or inclination to remain under the mis-
cbievous political influences of Washington, General
Grant at once visited the head-quarters of the Army
of the Potomac, and then went to Nashville to con-
sult with and lay his plans before Sherman, whom
he considered the most able of all his aids.
General Halleok was now made chief of the army
staff, the Army of the Potomac nas reorganized and
relieved of some of its ine£5cient and supernumerary
officers, and thoroughly equipped for the great cam-
paign before it.
The main interests of the war from this time on
centered around the operatioDS of Grant and Sher-
man, although the capture of Mobile and its forts,
and the capture of Fort Fisher and the port of Wil-
mington, North Carolina, the last gate-way of free-
booters and foreign blockade-runners, were events of
incalculable advantage to the cause of tiie country.
A vast number of minor operations and engagements
would also deserve mention in a more detailed hia-
tory of the battle and bloody side of the war.
The two important rebel forces were collected
under Lee in Virginia, and Joseph E. Johnston in
the mountains south of Chattanooga. These it was
Grant's purpose to strike .simultaneously, and orders
ov Google
ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 549
were iesaed for a general movemeat of the armies on
the 4th of May, 1864.
At this time 'Sherman,, with his advance at Ring-
gold, Georgia, had an effective force of betweeo
ninety and a hundred thousand men of all arms;
and opposed to him was Johnston's army at Dalton
then not half so large, hut which before the cam-
paign was far advanced reached, perhaps, sixty thou-
sand, and by the statement of the not very reliable
General Hood, seventy thousand. In the defenses
of Atlanta the rebel forqe was also greatly aug-
mented by Governor Brown's Georgia militia, not
numbered in the regular army conscripts.
As the Army of the Potomac began to cross the
Bapidan on the 5th of May, Sherman set forward to
destroy Johnston or drive him from the mountains
of Georgia, and the two remarkable final campaigns
of the war were commenced. The march of Sher-
man to Atlanta was conducted on the same general
plan as that of Grant to Richmond, and was, while
being laid in a country presenting more natural ob-
stacles to success, identical in many respects. From
Chattanooga to the Chattahoochee River within eight
miles of Atlanta, a series of mountain ridges and
spurs cut by rivers and poor narrow valleys rendered
this one of the most easily defended regions on the
eontinent, and consequently the hazardous task im-
posed upon and so successfully executed by Sher-
man will ever meet the admiration of the world,
and stand among the greatest of military achieve-
ments. The result of the campaign of Atlanta was
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550 LIFE AND TIMES OF
not creditable to Genernl Johnston, althoagh his
reguliir forco was much inferior in numbers to that
of his antagonist. His appointment to the command
over Bragg had been submitted to by Mr. Davis
against his will, and Davis's unfriendly disposition
toward him remained unbroken to the end, and, in-
deed, continues to this day. Bragg, who was also
unfriendly to Johnston, was put in a superior posi-
tion at Richmond. The correspondence between
Johnston, Davis, Bragg, and the rebel war depart-
ment throughont the cumpaign was more in the spirit
of personal enmity than of men engaged in a com-
mon struggle which stood much in need of harmony
from the beginning. Brn^ distinctly stated that
the effort to re-enforce and strengthen Johnston
would depend upon his assent to enter at once upon
nn oifensive policy for the recovery of Tennessee
and Kentucky ; and white not liirectly dissenting,
Johnston saw the necessity of first fighting Sherman
who was in his way. 'the following extract from
General Johnston's '* NaiTative " will plainly show that
he was not unmindful in his own operations of the ad-
vantage which might aocnie to the Northern allies : —
" The Northern Democrata had pronounced the man-
agement of the war a failure, and declared against its con-
tinuance; and the Presidential election, soon to occar,
was to turn upon the question of immediate peace or con-
tinued -war. Id all the earlier part of the year 1864, the
press had been publiahing to the Northern people most
exaggerated ideas of the military value of Atlanta, and
that it was to be taken, and that its capture would termi-
ovGoO'^lc
ABBIHAH UNCOLH. 651
nate tbe war. If Bb«nnan had been foiled, these teachings
would have caused great exa^eration of the consequeDces
of bis failure, which would have streDgthened the peace
party greatly; so roach, perhaps, as to have eoabled it to
uariy the PresideDtial election, which would have brought
the war to an immediate closet"
And how could sach an event as the success of
the Democrats at that election have brought the war
to an immediate close ? Evidently in no other way
than by the Mexicnnization of the Government, by
the successful candidate and his party at once seiz-
ing tbe Presidential office and driving out the still
legal Administration, and then acknowledging the in-
dependence of the Sooth. General Johnston was
well infonned as to the character and purposes of the
Northern Democratic leaders. But he utterly failed
to carry out his part of the scheme by whipping
Sherman. In the series of battles from Dalton to
Atlanta, over un almost impassable country, covered
with natural positions for defense against any su-
perior force, it would be difficult to find any great
amount of generalship on the part of General John-
ston, however much the conduct of the rebel sol-
diers may have been worthy of admiration. Had
be conducted the campaign with even Lee's skill and
stubbornness in Virginia, Sherman's march to Atlanta
might have been greatly delayed, at lenst.
Sherman finding that Rocky-Face Ridge, and the
gap in which tbe railroad passed through it strongly
barricaded and defended by Johnston's troops, pre-
sented an impractioable obstacle to bis reaching the
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662 ' UFE AND TIMES OF
rebel anny nt Dalton, b^an his first skillful move-
ment. On the 8th of May McPherson passed throogh
Snake Creek Gap, the greater part of the army soon
foUoning, thus turning the rebel position and com-
pelling Johnston to retreat to Eesaca, where on the
14th and 15th a severe battle was fought, with heavy
losses on both sides, but especially in the Union
army. JohnBton now fell back to the Etowah, bnt
this strong position he also abandoned, retreating to
Altoona Pass. After another battle at New Hope
Church, Sherman also turned this position. At Ken-
eaaw Mountain Johnston made his next stand, where
on the 27th of June Sherman attacked htm at two
points and was severely repulsed. This event, which
was no more than Sherman expected, again drove
him to his former plan of turning the rebel position,
from which he had only departed for policy's sake.
This movement forced Johnston back to the Ghatta-
hoochee Biver, which he soon abandoned, and fell back
to the fortifications around Atlanta, where he was
relieved from the command, and General J. B. Hood
placed at Uie head of the rebel army. Hood was a
more impulsive and in every way less able officer
tiian Johnston, although he did not at the outset de-
part from the plans of his former saperior.
Hood sallied from his fortifications and fonght
several battles around Atlanta, but was repulsed with
great loss, finally abandoning all hope of preventing
Sherman's turning his position. The Federal cavalry
had broken the lines of communication on the south,
and Stoneman, wbo was never a very successful officer.
ovGoO'^lc
ABHAHAU LINCOLN. 663
in an attempt to reach the priaon pens at Macon,
allowed bimself to^be surronnded, and wa9 forced to
surrender with a considerable part of his command.
The rebel general unwisely lost the uae of his cav-
alry, one fifth of his entire force, in an attempt to
destroy Sherman's line of communications with Chat-
tanooga. And although the damage done to Sher-
man was not inconsiderable, it did not alter or check
his plans for a moment. The rebel cavalry had
scarcely left a burning bridge until a construction
btiin with a thousand skUlful workmen was on the
spot to rebuild it.
Eariy in August Sherman began his movements to
turn Atlanta, and force its abandonment by the reb-
els. By the first of September he had reached Jones-
borough, twenty miles south of Atlanta, drawing a
considerable portion of the rebel army after him,
making that part of it left in the fortifications, with
all the Geoi^ia militia, too weak to attack Schofield,
and the part in front of him too weak to resist tiie
advance of the army with him'.
In this condition of affairs nothing was left to
Hood but to give up Atlanta, which he did on the
night of September Ist. On the next day the Fed-
eral troops took possession of it. Sherman soon
afterwards sent about four hundred and fifty families
from the town into Hood's army, and then burned
most of the place, sparing only churches and dwell-
ing-houses, a performance which, however justifiable
under any war code, was not so clearly politio and
wise in view of events that speedily followed.
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UFE AND TIMES OF
I the campaign from Chattanooga to Atlanta the
re loss in the nationnl army amounted to thirty
s&ttd men, and among the brave men who fell
James Birdseye McPherson, of whose military
Qrant thought more, perhaps, than that of nny
r oflScer in the army besides Sherman. The
1 tosses were probably greater, and nmong the
t distinguished, if not soldierly, of their officers
fell was the Episcopal Bishop, General Leoniilas
?his campaign ending in the fall of Atlanta had
L estremely disnstroua to the rebel cause. It
ad coDsternatioh and dismay throughout the " Con-
racy." Jefferson Davie came down to see Hood,
distinguished himself by several very nndtgnified
foolish speeches at different points on bis route,
was determined on another sortie toward Ibe
Lh, and Hood with his inadequate force was will-
to undertake it. Partly for this purpose this rash
er had displaced a more cautious and able gen-
Accordingly, toward the close of September,
d left Sherman in possession of Geoi^n, crossed
Chattahoochee, and set out on his fatal expedi-
te Tennessee.
The result of this csmpaign was received with
,t exultation throughout the North. On the 3d
September, the President issued a proclamation
ng upon the people to give thanks for " the sig-
success that Divine Providence has recentiy vouch-
d to the operations of the United States fleet
army."
:b,GOO'^IC
ABRAHAM LINCOLN.
The following order was also issued :
"ExBCirnTi Uanbioh, Septemtx
"The national thanks are tendered by the
Major-General William T. Sherman and the ga
and soldiers of his command before Atlanta,
tinguisbed ability, courage, and perseverance <
the campaign in Geoi^ia, which under Divine
resuUed in the capture of the city of Atl
marches, battles, sieges, and other military opt
have signalized this campaign, must render i
the annals of war, aud have entitled those wh
tioipated thereinto the applause and thanks of
"Abbahah Li:
While it is, perhaps, tme that Grant
sonal commaTid of the Army of the Pot
some reluctance, this feeling was, no dont
biilanced to a great extent by his dispos
what WAS expected of him, and his desire t<
Lee. His course, from the outset, was i
'Conciliate and inspire confidence. Meade
second in commnnd, a step which made ii
with the army. Still for a time there wa
erabte faction against him, and not a f
officers and men adhered to the old folly
McClellan.
. By the time appointed for a general mc
all the forces, Grant had visited Butler, ii
at Fortress Monroe, and consulted with hi
ing the part he was to take in the coming
and no effort had been spared anywhere
coofidenoe and success.
ov Google
566 LIFE AND TIUES 0^
Before daylight on the morning of the 4tii of May,
the Army of tlie Potomac, over a hnndred thousand
strong, under its new leader, began to cross the
Rapidao.
The rebel army, under General Lee, numbering
nearly seventy thousand made little or no resistance
to this movement, and it is a singular fact that
throughout the series of battles on the miu^h to
Richmond, Lee did not undertake to dispute the
passage of any of the numerous rivers, with his
strong antagonist. With his superior strength Gen-
eral Grant believed that the rebels would not offer
him battle, but would retreat before him. This mis-
take, for which there was, probably, no ground of
justification in Lee's former conduct, led to another,
which came very near being disastrous to the
national cause. This was in crossing the army into
"The Wilderness" rather prepared for a march than
a battle. *'The Wilderness" was not the spot that
Grant would have chosen for a battle, even with a
preponderant force. Here the Army of the Potomac
had once been unfortunate. The Wilderness was a
dense growth of pine and other trees, tangled in an
almost impenetrable mass, cut by deep ravines, and
penetrated by a few narrow roads, rendering an
army invisible at a hundred yards. A spot where
artillery and cavalry were comparatively useless. Lee
knew this ground well and determined to profit by
the advantage it presented for striking a foe outnum-
bering- him nearly two to one, or at least very greatly.
Accordingly, instead of retreating, as Grant expected
ovGoO'^lc
ABRAHAM UKOOLN. 667
him to do, L«e fell upon the FedeTal army, and tho
great battles of *' TheWildemeas" were fought on the
6th and 6th of May, with a loss on the Union side
double that of the rebels. Bat the battles taught Lee
the stubborn and determined character of his antago-
nist, and put him strictly on the defensive, a position
he was ncTer able to change materially. They also
taught the Army of the Potomac that it had a leader
who was not to be rendered inactive by repulse or
deterred by difficulties. On the 7th, Grant again
moved forward in an effort to turn the rebel right
and fall l^wJen him and Richmond. But in this he
was not successful. Lee soon detecting his purpose,
and being on the inside line retired with his own
force, and at Spottsylvaoia Oonrt House behind his
intrenchments was ready to dispute the Federal ad-
vance. And here again great battles were fought on
the 10th and 12th, in which the Union losses were
jnnch greater than the rebel.
In a few days, witb the army raised to nearly its
original oumbers by re-enforcements, Grant again set
forward in hia vain effort to get between Lee and his
seat of supplies. His cavalry, skillfully managed by
Sheridan, was kept in constant employment, still not
able to accomplish all he had expected of it.
By the last of May the Union army had reached
Uie neighborhood of Cold Harbor and the Gbicka-
hominy, with its base of supplies at McClellan's old
depot. White House on the Pamunckey River.
Here, at Cold Harbor, on the first of June, one of
the moat desperate battles of the war was fought,
ov Google
UFE AND TIMES OF
itttacking the rebels in their fortifications, and
two mea to their one.
the mean time General Butler, who had moved
James River, and fortified himself at Bermuda
3d, made some demonstrations toward Peters-
id Richmond, but had failed to take the former
,3 Grant expected him to do.
nz Sigel, who was in the Shenandoah Valley,
BO failed to carry oat his part of the pro-
e, and bad been superseded by Geneml Hun-
10 was forced to abandon the Valley and miike
ble retreat through West Virginia to the Ohio
er the battle of Cold Harbor, Lee went into bis
itions at Richmond and Petersbui^, and with-
lestntion Grant crossed the Ghickahominy, and
15th of June reached the James River with
ly, now talker -thiin when he crossed the Rapi-
the 4tb of May. His losses hnd been fifty
id, of which more thait eight thousand were
and more than thirty-five thousand wounded.
: the many valuable officers who had fallen
meral John Sedgwick,
reaching the fortifications at Richmond, ioclnd-
his re-enforcements under- Beauregard, Breck-
, and others, Lee's army numbered about ninety
id, his losses in the series of battles from the
n being about thirty thousand,
nt wits now before Richmond, and had settled
o a siege of that place. His object from the
was to destroy Lee's army, and not the capture
ovGoO'^lc
ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 659
of Richmond, and of this purpose he never lost sight.
He had failed to meet Lee in open batt]e as he hoped
to do, and that officer wae too wary to allow himself
to be cat off from his base of supplies, and crushed
by an overwhelming force. Lee having the inside
line, and an almost uubroken chain of fortifications
from the BApidtm to the James, had been able with
pluck and watchfulness to thwart the intentions of
his skillful and powerful foe. This he had done
without the exhibition of great generalship. And
while there was no very marked display of military
genius on either side, the failure of General Grant to
accomplish fully his original purpose was no good
ground for an argument in support of the want of
great generalship In him. While the country cried
out loudly against the enormous losses, the unaltera-
ble conviction was reached that Lee had met more
than his match, and that the end was not far distant.
Again, returning for a time to the West, Shermnn
is found sUll at Atlanta, nearly three hundred miles
from Nashville, and four hundred and seventy-five
from Louisville, with all his supplies to be drawn over
one railroad through a hostile country. It would have
been reasonable, even in a man of ordinary military
wisdom, to suppose that when the whole rebel army
had turned upon his communications, Sherman would
be forced to follow, and thus abandoii the ground he
hud gained. This was General Hood's conclusion when
he determined to march towards Nashville. And even
General Grant thought that Sherman should follow and
' vhip Hood. And this he did for a time undertake
ov Google
560 LIFE AND TIMES OF
to do. He sent Thomas to NasbTllle to organize and
command a force to operate . against Hood, and sent
nearly thirty thousand of his own men to his aid, and
after seeing that Thomas was able to contend with
his foe, he turned his attention to tiie daring scheme
to be briefly described further on.
Much against his will, Jefierson Davis had sub-
mitted to placing General Beauregard nominally in
command of alt the troops in this region, and although
Beauregard joined the army and went with it into
Tennessee, he did not interfere with Hood's disposi-
tion of affairs, and finally declined to go on to Nash-
TJlle. He seemed to have lost most of his interest
in a cause which he already believed to be lost
under the bad management of Mr. Davis.
Hood divided his army, increased against he
reached Nashville to nearly sixty thousand men, into
three corps, under Stephen D. Lee, B. F. Cheatham,
and A. P. Stewart; and James Wheeler and N. B.
Forrest conmianded his cavalry force. But he was
unfortunate from the outset, and soon began to dis-
play his temper in quarrels with his officers, against
whom he had the best grounds of' complaint. It was
no fault of his that Johnston had been removed from
the command, whom they considered much his supe-
rior, if not the first soldier of the " Confederacy."
To their failure* to execute his orders, Hood attrib-
uted the great part of his disaster on this expedi-
tion. But his campaign showed plainly enough
that the military spirit of the Rebellion was broken.
Schofield, who bad been sent from Kashville with
ovGoO'^lc
ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 561
about seTenteen thousand men, to oppose his
march, retreated before him to Columbia, where he
suffered a very narrow escape and greatly shook
Grant's confidence in his ability. But, through the
inaction of Hood's officers, Schofield was allowed to
correct his error to some extent, and effect his escape,
when it was in their power to prevent it. Partly
throngh necessity Schofield stopped at Franklin, eight-
een miles from Nashville, where the rebels, following
close on his heels, attacked him and in a great battle
met a bloody repulse, losing six thousand of their men,
while his own loss was not one-third as many. In the
night ho slipped away to Nashville. Notwithstanding
this disaster, in which many of his bravest officers had
fallen, Hood moved on to Nflshville, where Thomas,
finally ready with a force somewhat greater than his
own, moved oat of his intrenchments on the 15th of
December and assaulted him, the battle continuing
the greater part of that and the next day, and result-
ing in the complete overthrow of the rebel army.
Between fifteen and twenty thousand prisoners were
taken, and, unlike all other coses, the pursuit was
pushed with great vigor for two hundred miles, until
the rebel army was mainly disoi^nized in Alabama
and Mississippi, and Hood relieved of the command.
In the meantime Sherman had not been idle. At
first with a view of making Atlanta a military post,
when his weak foe was before him, he had found it
necessary to remove the remaining population be-
yond his lines. After Hood had marched northward,
and he had arranged for Thomas to take care of him.
ov Google
662 LIFE AND TIMES OF
Sherman Bonght permission of Grnnt to cut loose
from his old liue of supplies and seek an outlet on
the Atlantic. About the 1st of November Grnnt
gave his consent and blessing, and the preparation
began in earnest. The wonderful thing which Jef-
ferson Davis or no other person ever expected to
occur Sherman now did : cut his own commnnications.
The railroad from Atlanta to Chattanooga was
destroyed, many of the bridges which he had him-
self rebuilt were burned, and now it became a neces-
sity to destroy all that part of Atlanta which could
be of military advantage to the enemy after his de-
parture. With his army of sixty-five thousand men,
including five thousand five hundred cavalry or-
ganized into two corps or wings under O. 0. Howard
and H. W. Slocum, and the cavalry under Judson C.
Kilpatrick, on the 16th of November, Sherman began
his memorable march to the sea. The distance from
Atlanta to Savannah is about three hundred miles.
On the 21st of December he took possession of the
latter place, Hardee, with a considerable force, hav-
ing escaped from it towards Charleston during the
preceding- night. This wonderful march had been
made with a loss of two or three hundred men, and
A desolate track thirty or forty miles wide, including
the two great railroads connecting Atlanta with Sa-
vannah and Charleston, marked where the " Confed-
eracy " had agun been cut in two.
ovGoO'^lc
ABBAHAM LINCOUI.
CHAPTER XXV.
BEGINNING OF THE END—SHERMAN IN NORTH Ci
UNA— FALL OF CHARLESTON— MR. LINCOLN'S C(
CIL WITH HIS GREAT CAPTAINS— FIVE FORKS— I
OF RICHMOND— SHERMAN AND JOHNSTON— ENE
THE WAR— CLOSING SCENES IN THE LIFE OF MR.
COLN— DEATH— THE NATION IN SORROW.
GRANT had driven the rebel army from the ]
idaD to Richmond. His loss had been g:
but he coold afford to lose two men to Lee's
And even this would not represent the rela
strength and resources of the two contending foi
hy ft great deal. The boastful and arrogant i
leaders now began to feel how puny was their pc
in comparison with the skillfully handled and ah
inexhaustible resources of the Government,
strong man was fixing a death grasp on the Rebel
Its vital center had been torn asunder, and ano
onset would crush the reptile's head.
Petersburg, about twenty miles from Richm
was considered the key to that place. It was a
road center, was the direct way of connection
Wilmington and Charleston, and when it fell I
mond would be no longer tenable. Against
point Grant directed the greater part of his atter
during the fall and winter of 1864. But his |
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LIFE AND TIMES OF
,de slow prt^ess. Lee not only held with
ill his long defensive works, but also occa-
aftllied forth, striking his foe with telling ef-
3 the winter wore on, however, courage and
d in the rebels. The army under Lee was
nelting away. Its numerical strength wns
greatly exa^erated, and especially towards
when a handful of brave men In their strong
nents kept at bay Grant's vast araiy. Lee
held his position at Petersburg and Rich-
it also in the fall of 1864 actually withdrew
f his force for quite a pretentious sortie to-
ashington and into Pennsylvania. This was,
, of little consequence, and Grant sent Sher-
10 finally cleared the Shenandoah Valley,
7 becoming master of all the country north
nond, early in the spring joined Grant to
t in the final scenes of the Rebellion,
nan had in the mean time been instructed to
■th to co-operate with the army around Ricb-
nd Thomas was ordered to operate in the
eetion with his cavalry from East Tennessee,
perhaps, been a part of Grant's and Sher-
iginal plan, as discussed together soon after
Eis placed in command of all the armies, to
erman's force from Atlanta to the Gulf, but
iuces after the fall of Atlanta caused the
in-Chief, as well as Sherman, to turn his
towards the Atlantic Ocean. He at first
that Sherman should follow np and defeat
ifore starting on this expedition, but when
ov Google
ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 566
he saw that he could give Thomas the necessary
strength, he fell into Sherman's view that the favor-
able moment had arrived for the march through the
contitry to the coast. This reached, he seemed to
think the proper way for Sherman to join him was
by the sea. Looking to this end he set to work to
capture Wilmington, and this being done the Atlantic
coast was clear of rebel control at all points in his
way. But Sherman did not think it best to break
the discipline of his army by a sea voyage, correctly
believing that he could better serve the cause by
marching overland. To this view Grant finally as-
sented, too ; and after conducting affairs in a lively
and thorough manner in Savannah for a month, Sher-
man set out, towards the close of January, for Qolds-
boro, North Carolina.
In the meantime, pressed by necessity, Jefferson
Davis had again called Joseph E. Johnston to the
front, and put him in command of all the forces south
of Virginia to operate against Sherman. But the
most he could do was to keep out of Sherman's way.
The Union army made a considerable bend to the in-
terior, far enough to take in and destroy Columbia.
Hardee also evacuated Charleston, and on the 18th of
February, 1865, General Gillmore entered that city.
At Bentonville a considerable battle was fought,
and throughout the march there was almost constant
skirmishing. Still Sherman pursued his way, leaving
desolation behind him, as he had done in G-eorgia.
* On the 2l8t of March he reached Goldsboro, where
he found Schofield, whom Grant had sent, with over
ov Google
UFE Am) XnCES OF
>ntj thousaDd men, from Wilmington. Leaving
army in the command of Schofield, Sherman
it on to Oeneral Grant's head-quarters at City
nt on the James River, nine miles from Peters-
g, where on the 27th be met President Lincoln,
leral Grant, and Admiral David D. Porter, in
ncil.
The 10th of April was fixed upon a& the day for
eneral movement for the last straggle. Lee's line
defense was now thirty miles long, a length he
been compelled to take by Grant's repeated
impts to torn his right. The whole number of
ikets actually guarding this line on the last day
March did not exceed a thousand to the mile.
! most wonderful thing in all this bloody contest
green Grant and Lee was the holding of this long
, even if It was well fortified, against the vast
ly before it. Grant knew the character of the
Die men on the inside, and preferred to wait until
moment came, which he knew would come, when
Qould take it without great loss of life among his
I men. Lee did not share Mr. Davis's opinion
i Richmond was absolutely essential to the life
he Rebellion, and would have abandoned it before
ras too late to unite all their forces to overwhelm
rman in his march through South Carolina. He
the time was not far distant when Richmond
lid have to be abandoned. On the 2d of March,
5, he sent a letter to Crrant asking an interview
the purpose of determining if the controversy, as
termed it, could not be settled by a convention.
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ABRAHAM UNCOLN. 567
Grant sent this letter to Washington, at the aame
time showing that he was not averse to meeting Lee.
The following reply, writtea by Mr. Lincoln himself,
was returned : —
" Washihotob, March 3, 1866, 12 P. M,
" LiinrrENANT-GENERAii Qbant, — The President di-
rects me to say to you that he wishea you to have no
conference with General Lee, unless it be for the capitula-
tion of General Lee's army, or on some minor and purely
military matter.' He instructs me to say that you are not
to decide, discuss, or confer upon any political questioii.
Such qoestions the President holds in his own hands, and
will submit them to no military conferences or conven-
tions. Meanwhile you are to press to the utmost your
military advantages.
" Edwin M. Stanton, Secretary of War."
Grant now becoming uneasy about Lee'a getting
away, from him to prolong the contest somewhere
else, renewed his vigilance, and desiring his army
without the assistance of Sherman's to finish the task
it had begun on the Bapidan, on the 29th of March
left City Point to begin the final movement. On
account of the heavy rains that now set in his
progress was slow, his determination being to turn
the rebel right, and whQe drawing attention to this
point begin the assault on the main defensive works.
On the 31st Lee, mistaking Grant's movement on his
right as an attempt to cut the South side railroad,
simply withdrew from the lines a large part of his
small army, and with it fell with desperation upon
Sheridan, who oommanded this advance. On Satur-
day, April 1st, Sheridan completely routed this force
ov Google
LIFE AND TIMES OF
great battle at Five Forks, and before daylight
Sunday morning, Grant carried the rebel works,
before noon the remnant of Lee's anhy was put
igbt. That night Jefferson Davie and hia fol-
>rs left Richmond, and Ewell burned a great part
he city with the rebel archives. The criminals
le penitentiary were set at liberty, the city plun-
d by its own people, and a night of horror closed
Rebellion in its proud, desolate ciipitni.
)n the 3d of Apiil the Federal troops took pos-
ion of the city, and were soon able to arrest the
nnd restore order. And on the next day Abraham
;oln walked into Richmond amidst the shouts and
'ers of the helpless race that regarded him as a
or.
Lee hoped to effect his escape and join Johnston,
I some vague notions of still being able to con-
e the struggle. Rut as to the conduct of his
^t be gave no orders, and hundreds of his men
irted. Their officers even encouraged them to do
And notwithstanding the general feeling that all
lost, most of those remaining with him fought
I great bravery when called upon to do so. When
reached the Danville Railroad he found that the
ist ubiquitous Sheridan had preceded him. He
continued west towards Lynchburg, only to find,
ppomattox Court-house, that Sheridan was before
across his track, not only with his cavalry, but
a large body of infantry he was not able to
it. Some of his officers had dready advised him
irrender the hopeless cause. And on the 7th of
ovGoO'^lc
ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 569
April, ia a letter to him. General Qrant had iDvited
him to do the same. At last, oa the iDorning of tbe
9th, after a vain attempt to gain some political ad-
vantages from Grant hy letter, the two commanders
met and arranged the simple, easy terms of surren-
der, as dictated by Grant.
Of, the Army of Northern Virginia, Lee had left,
of all branches and kinds, only about twenty-eight
thousand men to he surrendered. From the Rapidaa
to Appomattox Court House it had made a gallant
record which, in a better cause, would have been
worthy of undying fame.
Od the 14th of April, Johnston invited Sherman
to an armistice until terms for the surrender of the
army under him could be agreed upon. On the 18th
in the presence of General John C. Breckinridge,
then the rebel secretary of war, Sherman and John-
ston drew up a plan- for the surrender of the latter,"
involving political principles which were distasteful
at Washington, and especially so under tbe shadow
of the great misfortune which had just befallen the
country in the moment of triumph. And General
Grant was ordered forward to take command of
Sherman's army and direct matters to a suitable and
honorable result.
But Johnston wisely accepted the terms given to
Lee, and on the 26th of April the surrender was
effected, Sherman still conducting the negotiations,
and Grant approving. This was virtually the end
of the war of the Rebellion. By the end of the
following month the authority of the Government
ov Google
570 LIFE AND TIHE9 OF
WHS again restored to the Rio Grande. The closing
events and sceaes of the war, and the conduct of
General Sherman for which he was so entirely mis-
anderstood and unjustly censured, must be treated
of in the history of the next Administration, which
had its existence on account of the assassination of
President Lincoln.
In September, 1862, the rebel authorities at
Richmond ordered all white men between the ages
of thirty-five and forty-five into the army, and direc-
tions were given to catch them up wherever they
could be found, without question or ceremony. Id
Febmary, 1864, all white men from seventeen to
fifty were conscripted for the war. At this time,
too, all male free negroes were ordered into the
service of the rebel army, and twenty thousand male
slaves. In the fall of the same year, as it bec;ime
evident that all other resources were exhausted, Mr.
Davis recommended the employment of negroes as
soldiers, and the appropriation of the entire male
slave population to the purposes of the army, prom-
ising emancipation as a reward for faithful services.
Yirginia stubbornly opposed this measure, and at
first the rebel congress declined to pass a bill author-
izing negro soldiers. Finally, however, the meas-
ure was adopted, and Mr. Davis authorized to put
into the army one-fourth of all the male negroes btr
tween the ages of eighteen and forty-five. But the
time had passed for the rebels to derive either good
or evil from this source, or, indeed, from any other.
As Grant and Sherman were preparing for the
ovGoO'^lc
r
ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 671
final mOTement, Mr. Lincoln relaxed Dothmg in his
own efforts to give the cmsfaing blow to the Rebell-
ion. On the 19th of March he issued an order for
the arrest of all citizens or domiciled aliens engaged
in trade or intercourse with the rebels ; directing that
all non-resident foreigners found Tiolating the block-
ade should leave the United States in twelve dnys ;
and marshals were directed to arrfest and imprison all
foreigners found disregarding the order.
In the wild rejoicing over the fall of Eichmond
Mr. Lincoln joined, and if he had ever entertained fear
for his own safety he lost it at this time. On the Sd
of April, unattended, except by Admiral Porter, his
little son Tad, and the few sailors who had rowed
him from the war-vessel in the James River, he
landed and walked through the streets to General
Weitzel's head-quarters in the former residence of
Jefferson Davis in Richmond. Here he met several
citizens, and afterwards in the same reckless way
rode through several of the principal streets. On
the following day he again appeared in Richmond,
this time accompanied by Mrs. Lincoln, Vice-Presi-
dent Johnson, and many others.
Owing to his conversations at this time with
repentant rebels he sent this letter to General
Weitzel :—
" HaAi>^uABTEBB Abkiu of THi Unitrd BxATia, \
"CiTT Point, April 6, 1865. {
"Major-General Weitzel, Richmond, Va.: —
" It has been intimated to me that the gentlemen who
have acted as the Legislature of Virginia, in support of
the Ret>enion, may now desire to aaaemble at Richmond
ov Google
572 LIFE AND TIMES OF
and take measures to withdraw the Vit^iaia troops aod
other support from resistance to the General Govern-
ment. If ttftiy attempt it, give them permission and pro-
tection, until, if at all, they^ attempt some action hosdle to
the United 8tat«s, in which case yon will notify them,
give them reasonable time to leave, and at the end of which
time arrest any who remain,
"Allow Judge Campbell to see tliis, but do not make
it public. Yours, etc., A. Lincoln."
Not only Mr. Lincoln's disposition to treat the
rebels with extreme leniency is here foreshadowed,
but also bis plan of reconstruction. Both hia dis-
position and plan are more fully seen in the follow-
ing speech, the last Mr. Lincoln ever made, delivered
to a vast assemblage of light-hearted and happy
people in fiont of the Executive Mansion in Wash-
ington on the 11th of April : —
MR. LmCiOLN'S LAST SPEECH.
" We meet this evening not in sorrow, but in gladness of
heart. The evacuation of Petersburg and Richmond, and the
surrender of the principal insurgent army, give hope of a right-
ous and speedy peace, whose joyous expresdon can not be re-
strained. In the midst of this, however, He from whom all
blessings flow j^ust not be forgotten. A call for a national
thanksgiving is being prepared, and will be duly promulgated.
Nor must those whose harder part gives us the cause of rejoic-
ing be overlooked. Their honora must not be parceled out with
others. I myself was near the front, and had the high pleasure
of transmitting much of the good news to you ; but no part of
the honor, for plan or execution, is mine. To General Grant,
his skillful officers and brave men all belongs. The gallant
navy stood ready, but was not in reach to take acdve part.
" By these recent successes, tie reinauguration of the na-
tional authority, reconstruction, which has had a large shore of
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ABBAHAM LINCOLN. 673
thought from the first, ia pressed much iii<we dosel; upon oar
att«ntioD. It is fraught with great difficulty. Unlike the case
of a war between independent nations, there is no authorised
organ for us to treat with. No man has authority to give up
the BebelliOD for any other man. We etmpl; mast begin with
and mold from disorganized and discordant elements. Nor is it
a small additional embarrassment that we, the loyal people,
differ among onrselTee as to the mode, manner, and means of
reconstruction.
" As a general rule, I abstain from reading the reports of
attacks upon myself, wishmg not to be provoked by that ta
which I can not properly ofi^r an answer. In spite of this
precaution, however, it comes to my knowledge that I am much
censured from wime supposed agency in setting up and seeking
to sustain the new State Government of Ijouisiana. In this I
have done just so much as, and nO more, than the public knows.
In the annual message of December, 1863, and accompanying
proclamation, I presented a plan of reconstruction (as the
phrase goes), which I promised, if adopted by any State, should
be acceptable to, and sustaiued by, the Executive Government
of the Nation. I distinctiy stated that this was not the only
plan which might posdbly be acceptable; and I also distinctiy
protested that the Executive claimed no right to say when or
whether members should be admitted to seats in CoDgrees irom
•uch States. This plan was, in advance, submitted to the then
Cabinet, and distinctly approved by every member of iL One
of them suggested that I should then, and in that connection,
apply the Emaucipation Proclamation to the theretofore ex*
cepted parts of Virginia and Louisiana ; that I should drop
the su^;eation about apprenticeship for freed people, and that
I should omit the protest agiunst my own power, in regard to
the admission of members of Congress, but even he approved
every part and parcel of the plan which has since been em-
ployed or touched by the action of Louisiana.
"The new constitution of Louisiana, declaring emancipation
for the whole State, practically applies the Proclamation to the
part previously excepted. It does not adopt apprenticeship for
freed people, and it is silent, as it could not w(jl be otherwise,
about the admisnoD of members to Congress. Bo that, as it
ov Google
674 UFn AND TIUBS OF
applies to LooiMaiu, every member of tbe Cabinet fiill; ap-
proved the plan. The message weot to CoogresB, and I receiv^
many commendationa of the plan, written and verbal; and not
a BiDgle objection to it, from any professed emancipationist,
came to my knowledge, until after the npws reached Washing-
ton that the people of Louisiana had begun to move in accord*
ance with it. From about July, 1862, I bad corre«ponded
with differeot persons, supposed to be interested, seeking a re-
construction of the State government for Louiuana. When
the menage of 1863, with the plan before mentioned, reached
New Orleaue, General Banks wrote me he was confident that
the people, with hts military co-operation, would reconstruct
substantially on that plan. I wrote him, and some of them, to
tr^ it. They tried it, and the result is known. Such only has
been my agency in getting up tbe Louisiana government. As
to sustaining it, my promise is out, as before stated. But as
bad promisee are better broken than kept, I shall treat this as a
bad promise, and break it whenever I shall be convinced that
keeping it is adverse to the public interest. But I have not
yet been so convinced.
" I have been shown a letter on this subject, supposed to be
an able one. in which the writer expresses regret that my mind
has not seemed to be definitely fixed on the queetion whether
the seceded States, so-called, are ia the Union or out of it.
It would, perhaps, add astonishment to his regret were he to
learn that, rince I have found professed Union men endeavoring
to make that question, I have purpoteU/ forborne any public ex-
pression upon it. As appears to me, that question has not been,
nor yet is, a practically material one, and that ony discueaon of
it, while it thus remains practically immaterial, could bare no
effect other than the mischievous one of dividing our friends.
As yet, whatever it may hereafter become, thftt question is bad
as the basis of a controversy, and good for nothing at all — a
merely pernicious abstraction. We all agree that the seceded
States, so-called, are out of their proper practical relation with the
Union, and that the sole object of the Government, civil and mili-
tary, in regard to those States, is to again get them into that proper
practical relation. I believe it is not only poeuble, but in feet
earner to do this without deciding, or even conddering, whether
ovGoo'^lc
ABRAHAM UNOOLN. 675
ibeae States han ever been out of the TJdiod, than with it.
Finding themgelvea aafeljr at home, it would be utterly imma-
terial whether they had ever been abroad. Let us all joio in
doing the acts necessary to reetoring the proper practical rela^
tions between these States and tbe Union, and each forever
afl«r innocently indulge his own opinion whether, in dwng tlie
acts, be brought the States from without into tbe Union, or only
gave them proper assistance, they never having been out (rf it.
" The amount of constituency, so to speak, on which the new
Louisiana government rests, would be more satisfactory to all
if it 'contained fifty, tliirty, or eren twenty tiioueand, instead of
only about twelve thousand, as it really does. It is also unsat-
isfiictory to some that the elective franchise is not given to the
colored man. I would myself prefer that it were now conferred
on the very intelligent, and those who serve our cause as acA-
diers. Still the ijuestion is not whether tbe Louisiana govern-
ment, as it stands, is quite all that is denrable. The question
is, 'Will it be wiser, to take it as it is, and help to improve
it, or to reject and disperse jtf ' Can Louisiana be brought
into proper practical relation with Uie Union sooner by sustain-
mg or by di«earding her new State govemmentf
"Borne twelve thousand voters, in the, heretofore Slave State
of Louisiana, have sworn alleg^oe to the Union, assumed to
be the rightful political power of tbe State, held elections, or-
ganized a State government, adopted a Free State constituUon,
{^ving the benefit of public schools equally to black and white,
and empowering the Le^latnre to confer tbe elective franchise
upon the colored man. Their Legislature has already voted to
ratify the Constitutional amendment recently passed by Con-
gress, abolishing slavery throughout the Nation. These twelve
thousand persons are thus fully committed to the Union, and
to perpetual freedom in the States — committed to the very
things and nearly all the things tbe Nation wants ; and they ask
the NaUon's recognition and its assistance to make good that com-
mittal. Now, if we reject and spam them, we do our utmost
to disorganize and disperse them. We, in effect, say to the
white men: 'You are worthless, or worse; we will neither help
you, nor be helped by you.' To the blacks we say : ' This cup
of Liberty whidi these, your old masters, hold to your lips, we
ov Google
t UFE AND TIMK8 OF
1 duh flvm yon, and leave yon to the chtmcee of gathering
spilled find scattered cootenta in eome vague and undefined
m, where, and how.' If this conrse, discouraging and par-
sing both black and white, has any tendency to bring Louia-
i into proper practical relations with the Union, I have, so
been unable to perceive it. If, on the contrary, we recog-
! and Bustain the new government of Loniaiana, the convene
ill this is made true.
"We encourage the hearts and nerve the arms of the twelve
usand to adhere to their work, and argue for it, and prose-
I for it, and fight for it, and feed it, and grow it, and ripen
to a complete succese. The colored man, too, sedng all
ted for him, U inspired with vigilance, and energy, and dar-
to the Bune end. Grant that he desires the elective iran-
le, will he not attain it sooner by saving the already
anced steps towards it, than by running backward over
m T Concede that the new government of Louiuana is only
vhat it should be as the egg is to the fowl, we shall sooner
e the fowl by hatching the ^g than by smashing it.
lUghter.) Again, if we reje<jt Lonidana, we also reject one
i in favor of the proposed amendment to the ^National Con-
ation. To meet this proposition, it has been argued that no
-e than three-fourths of those States, which have not at-
ipted secemon, are necessary to validly ratify the amend-
it I do not commit myself against this, further than to say
t such a Tatifiation would he questionable, and sure to be
tistently questioned, while a ratification by three-fourths of
the States would be unqneelioned and unquestionable.
"I repeat the question : 'Can Louisiana be brought into
per practical relation with the Union tooner by natahiing
ly diacarding ber new State govemmentT' What has been
of Louisiana will apply generally to other States. And
so great peculiarities pertain to each State, and such
ortant and sudden changes occur in the same State, and,
lal, so new and unprecedented is the whole case, that no
lusive and inflexible plan can saiely be prescribed as to de-
I and collaterals. Such exclusive and inflexible plan would
sly become a new entanglement Important prindplea may,
must, be inflexible.
ovGoO'^lc
ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 577
"In tbe praent ritnadon, as the phra8e goea, it may be mj'
duty to make some new announcement to the people of the
South, I am considering, and shall not &U to act, when sat-
isfied that action will be proper,"
On the same day the President issued a proclama-
tion opening the ports of the South to general com-
merce, and on the 13th, an order from the War De-
partment pat a stop to all drafting and recruiting, to
remove restrictions on trade, and generally compress
the plans for continuing the war.
The Cabinet was now in complete accord with
the President in lenient feeling toward the South,
and in general views of reconstruction, and was thus
composed: Wm, H. Seward, Edwin M. Stanton,
Gideon Welles, Wm, Dennison, J. P. Usher (who
was to give place to Jnmes Harlan in May), nnck
James Speed, who had in November, 1864, taken the
place of Judge Bates, as Attorney-Qeneral. On the
14th, the President called a Cabinet meeting which
was very harmonious, in view of the immediate end-
ing of the war, there being no diversity of opinion
on the subject of reconstruction, now for the first time
appearing as a matter of great consequence. Mr.
Seward was not at this meeting, owing to severe
wonnds received from a fall from his buggy, Mr,
Carpenter, in his " Six Months in the White House,"
says of this last Cabinet meeting : —
"General Grant was present, and daring a loll in the
disoaseioD the President turned to him and asked if he
had heard from General Sherman. General Grant replied
that he had not, but was in hourly expectation of reoeiv-
S7-Q
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8 LIFE AMD TIMES OP
I dUpatohes from him anoouDciDg the snrreDcler of
hnston.
"'Well/ eaid the Preudent, *yoa wilt hear very soon
w, and the nevs will be important.'
"'Why do you think so?' said the Geoeral,
"'Because,' said Mr. Lincoln, 'I had a dream last
rht; and ever since the war began, I have invariably had
> same dream before any important military event oc-
rred.' He then instanced Bull Run, Antietam, Gettya-
Tg, etc., and said that before each of these events, he
i bad the same dream ; end turning to Secretary Welles,
d : ' It is in your line, too, Mr. Welles. The dream is,
Lt I saw a ship sailing very rapidly ; and I am sure that
portends some important national event.' "
Id the ordinary way of viewing each things, this
saming of Mr. LiqcoId's would go under the head
superstition. It would be difficult to associate
ch superstition with the irreligioo, which some, at
stages of his life, have attributed to Mr. Lincoln.
it all persons will agree that in giving bis dreams
liny manner, let alone with the air of such coq-
ence, to his Cabinet, Mr. Lincoln presents a new
d singular spectacle in the conduct of Presidents,
lat his dream now pointed to himself, if to any-
:ng, Mr. Lincoln did not seem to have any suspi-
<n, and since he had entered upon his office he had
t felt so free and light-hearted aa on that 14th
April.
To his wife he had said : " And well I may feel
, Mary, for I consider this day the war has come to
Jose. We must be more cheerful in the future ;
tween the war and the loss of our darling Willie,
I have been very miserable."
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ABBAHAM LINCOLN. . 579
Among the other ways Mr. Lincoln took of exr
hibiting his lightness of spirit at this time, was his ar-
rangement to be preaent at a perfonaance at Ford's
Theater. It is, perhaps, unnecessary to stop to con-
sider the propriety or impropriety of a President
ever visiting such a place, let alone in times of such
national distress. And it would be folly to intimate
that the result might not have been the same, jf the
President had been at the White House, the Soldiers'
Home, or any place tilse, as unprotected as he chose
to go,^ when threats of assassination were reaching
him daily. Still there remains a point connected
with the tragedy of the night of the 14th of April
which may not be passed in silence, and which will
ever attmct the notice of the careful reader of his-
tory, if it does not give rise to a sense of regret or
a feeling of shame in the American people and- the
friends of Abraham Lincoln, even viewing them from
no more than a moral elevation.
The place to die is of no less importance than
that in which we are born. The place of either of
these events may seriously affect any man's post-
humous reputation. The mutter at issue is character,
and offices, deeds, degrees of civilization, forms of
government can avail little. Simply trace the case
where the imagination would lead ! From mere man
nothing can drive the taint of place or circumstance.
Only a Qod could be bom in a manger or could die
on a cross.
The unwelcome specter of Ford's Theater must
«ver haunt this dreadful tragedy, mocking the ten-
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}0 . LIFE AND TIMES OF
jrest abd strongest memoiiea ttiiit cliog around the
Te and the tomb of the martyr. Even John Quincy
dams, with his passion for theater-going, woold not
tve chosen to bid adieu to the world in a theater,
^bat pride and pleasure there is in the eulogiuin.
He died at his post!"
In the pressure upon Mr. Lincoln's life, the popular
imands, in the very composition of his character,
lose may seek apologies who will; I hold that no
uly great mind is so limited, so circumscribed in its
tmands for outlet or recreation, that it most hunt it
doubtful times in questionable places. To such
lere could never possibly be a moment or an occa-
Dn when something of beauty would not rise up a
y forever.
Early in the day it was known that Mr. Lincob
ould attend the theater that night, and some time
ter eight o'clock, unaccompanied except by Mrs.
ineoln. Major H. R. Rathbone, and Miss Clara
'. Harris, he made his way amidst the welcome
eetings of the densely packed audience, to the
>x engaged for the Presidential party on the
cond floor.
General Qrant was now much sought after in
ashiogton, but the calm and unceremonious soldier
as little disposed to gratify public curiosity. Many
:peoted to see him by the President's side that
ght, and it was Mr. Lincoln's desire that they
lould not be disappointed. But General Grant had
isinesa elsewhere; and other persons whom the
resident pressed to accompany him were also tog
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ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 581
much occupied with more essential, desirable, or bet
ter thbgs.
At a qoarter past ten o'clock, the incarnate fiend
Joho Wilkes Booth, a member of a family of " actors,'
gained access to the President's box unnoticed by it
occupants, barred the door after him, and, drawing i
pistol, shot the President, the ball entering the bact
of his head. Major Rathbone, unarmed, at odci
grappled the murderer who stabbed him in the am
near the shoulder, and breaking away, leaped ten 01
twelve feet to the stage, crying, ^'Sic semper tyrannis !'
and waving bis dagger to the yet confounded audi
ence, shouted, "The South is avenged," or somethinf
to that effect, made his way to his horse in the street
and escaped to sympathizing friends in Maryland.
After he was shot, Mr. Lincoln never spoke again
He was soon afterwards removed to a house acrosi
the street, where at twenty-two miontes past sevei
o'clock on the next morning, Saturday, April 15
1865, he "died." Not long after the city waj
startled by the murder at the theater, the report wen
out that another of the avengers of the South hat:
made, perhaps, a fatal assault on the Secretary o
State, then confined to his bed by the injuries re
ceveid in the fall from his carringe. The air wai
rife with stories of assassination, all feeling of secu
rity was lost, and no citizen then living had evei
seen so dark a night as that was in the Nations
Capital.
The tidings of the murder of the President boot
spread this darkness over the whole country; and
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UFE AND TIMES OF
ed, the civilized world stopped aghast at the
id deed. The memories of thitt Saturday caa
)r pass away. Who can not now reproduce the
picture? AU business was suspended. Men
dered from their stores and shops ; farmers
nted their horses and rode in silence to town ;
Is were grasped without a word; the tongue
ved to the roof of the mouth; strong hearts
) way in floods of bitter tears. O ! it was the
miest day America had ever seen! "I saw in
day more of the human heart than in all the
of my life." So said Charles Godfrey Leland,
so may every man say who then lived.
Soon after his death the body of the President
removed to the White House, embalmed, aod
ed in the *' Green Room."
)n Wednesday, 19th, the "funeral services " were
brmed in the grand " East Room " of the Fres-
t's Mansion, after which the body was carried to
Capitol, where additional thousands filed through
great rotunda to gain a last look at the pale,
' face so recently lit up by Lincoln, the gentle,
irons spirit, then and ever since more loved than
other President of the United States.
Finally, on the morning of the 21st, the coffin
closed, conveyed to the railroad depot, and on a
id funeral train started on its long journey to
ngfield, Illinois. At Baltimore, Philadelphia, New
k, and, indeed, in all the cities, and throughout
country, in the entire journey, the people came
aass to the line of the raad to do honor to the
ovGoO'^lc
ABRAHAM LINCOLN.
martyred President. From the 19th of April 1
3d of May, when the body was laid in " Onk
Cemetery " at Springfield, this funeral had cont
Nothing like it had ever been seen in Americt
haps, not in the world.
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LIFE AND TIMES OF
CHAPTER XXVI.
TER AND WORK OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN-
WONDERFUL STUDY— THE GREAT, THE
WISE, AND THE GOOD.
»nd had come, such an end as Mr. Lincola
lis wife had dreamed of, if not expected, for
le public had passed through the stages of
i demonstrative grief, of anger and revenge,
lable, - second thought, and become calm.
) healer, has made this no exception to the
long ago men were able, perhaps, to hear
1 of good report, and what of ill, concerning
;ular and interesting character. Notwith-
his simplicity and plainness, on two great
: least, men were deceived in Abrahan Lio-
hese were his real force as a man and Presi-
I his religious character during his Presi-
nd at the end. In this chapter it b de-
< look briefly at his official capacity nod his
raits.
>ril, 1873, Charles Francis Adams delivered
/■, a " Memorial Address on the Life, Charac-
3ervice8 of W. H. Seward." In this address
na committed the great error of placing Mr.
rirtualty at the head of the Government in
join's Administration. There may be an
Diqmzeob,' Google
ABRAHAM UNOOLN. 685
apology for Mr. Adams, in the fact that his error was
a commoQ one at the outset, eepeciaJiy with New
York and New England politicians. At the begin-
niDg of the AdmiDistration Mr. Adams was sent as
Minister to England, where he remained until after
Mr. Lincoln's death, and bad less opportunity than
other men, perhaps, to correct the error into which
he had fallen. AH his correspondence as the repre^
sentatiTe of the Government was with Mr. Seward,
and he seemed to see only the Secretary of State in
all the important steps of the Administration. Still
Mr. Adams was able to know better than his address
indicates, and his opinions of Mr. Lincoln were de-
iamatory. His opinion of Mr. Seward was colored
beyonfl proportion, and also erroneous. He was mis-
taken in the character of both men. At the outset
Mr. Lincoln shrank from comparing his inexperience
in public affairs with the long service of some of the
men he had chosen to associate with him in the con-
duct of the affairs of the Oovernment, and it is un-
doubtedly true that this association rendered him
more deferential towards the views of others. He
foand the machinery of the Oovernment too compli-
cate to be managed by one man, and having confi-
dence in the members of his Cabinet he was glad to
rely upon them for the performance of the work of
the Departments over which they presided. And
here he made it a mie not to interfere, unless, as
the responsible head of all, it became necessary for
him to do so. He who has followed with any care
the coarse of this story can have little difficulty in
ov Google
^mm
686 LIFE AUD TIMES OF
decidii^ who was the master. If Mr. Seward's
frienda deceived themselves about this matter, it was
more thun Mr. Seward did after the mismanagement
and difficalties surrounding the attempts to relieve
Fort Sumter. Mr. Seward was fond of keeping up
' the delusion in which he and his friends had started
out, bat he was erelong mistaken himself about his
piece in the Administration. And Mr. Adams did
him a great iojurj in indioating that he felt another
was nominally enjoying the honors for which his
wisdom had laid the foundation. He had no such
feeling toward Mr. Lincoln, although he was a poli-
tician, perhaps in all that term ordinarily implied.
Mr. Seward's standing with the ' President was
very high, and not anfrequently his judgment, and
not Mr. Lincoln's inclinatioQ, controlled a point of
conduct. But this was so with all the heads of De-
piirtments, where the President thought the oircum-
stances justiQed hia confidence and deference, and
was only more apparent with Mr. Seward owing to
the more general nature of his position as an adviser.
While Mr. Lincoln seldom differed openly with
any of the members of his Cabinet, he often treated
their most serious recommendations with a story, and
never quite got rid of his disposition to look upon
their opinions lightly. While he seldom failed to
coDBult them on important matters, some of his moat
marked steps were taken before they were aware of
what was coming, or without being able to assent or
protest. No very small part of hia countrymen be-
lieved Mr. Lincoln deficient in will-power, and it is,
ovGoO'^lc
ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 6S7
perhaps, astonishing that in his Cabinet this opinioa
hiid a place. Mr. Carpenter tells this story of a con-
versation he had with Attomey-GeDeral Bates on
this point: —
" Referring to Mr. Lincoln's never-failing fiind of anec-
dote, he (Bates) remarked : ' The character of the Presi-
dent's mind is such that bis thought habitually takes on
this form of illustration, by which the point he wishes to
enforce is invariably brought home with a strength and
clearness impossible in hours of abstract argument. Mr.
Lincoln,' he added, 'comes very near being a perfect man,
according to my ideal of manhood. He lacks but one
thing.' Looking up from my palette, I aaked, musingly,
if this was official dignity as President. ' No,' replied
Judge Bates, ' that is of little consequence. His deficiency
is in the element of will. I have sometimes told him, for
instance, that he was undt to be intrusted with the par-
doning power. Why, if a man comes to him with a touch-
ing story, his judgment is almost certain to be a&ected
by it. Should the applicant be a woman, a wife, a mother,
or a sister, in nine cases oat of ten, her tears, if nothing
else, are sure to prevail.'"
But, Mr. Lincoln could and did say no in many
of these cases where he considered there was some
principle at stake, or something beyond the mere re-
Uef of pain or trouble. The diversity of sentiment
on this point in Mr. Lincoln's character arose less
from a defect in him than from the defective way of
viewing the case. la there any man now so fool-
hardy as to maintain that Mr. Lincoln could be led,
knowingly, to do a wrong, in his mature and best days ?
Where principles of justice and right were concerned,
no man was firmer. When substance was at stake,
ov Google
LIFE AlfD TIUES OF
Lincoln was unalterable. What fae deemed right,
me, or good, or best, he sapported with all his
ht. For ways, shadows, raanners, Don-essentiala,
lid not care. He yielded. Where sentiment or
rt was the actor he leaned with the power that
d the moment. Trifles had little attraction for
. To questions of substance, of moment, of truth,
ight, to genuine principle, he hang with changless
loity.
Dn his way to Washington in 1861 he said in
ependence Hall, in Philadelphia: "I have said
ling but what I am willing to live by, and, if it
he pleasure of Almighty God, die by." And the
ciples here announced, and those which the prog-
of events caused him subsequently to adopt,
actually lead to his death. For his principles he
[. What American, either in his life or death,
ibited a more potent will, a more unalterable
otion to principle? To view him iimong prin-
es and essentials, he was unbending and as Bim
I rock. To view him among trifles, customs,
srings, and forms, he was yielding and forgiving,
he realm of mercy Abraham Lincoln was among
greatest of men.
Mr. Stanton, the Secretary of War, had desired
rithdraw from the difficult place he held in the
inet, and metmt to do so when he «ouId see the
I had come ; accordingly a few days after the sur-
ler of Lee, he presented the matter to the Pros-
it. It was a written form of resignation, in which
stem War Secretary took occasion to speak in
ovGoO'^lc
ABRAHAM LIHCULN. 689
the wannest terms of the President's kiDdness to
him, and of his own appreciation of the generoas
man with whom he had .been associated. Greatly
affected by the contents of the paper, Mr. Lincoln
tore it to pieces, and threw his arms around the Sec-
retary, saying as he did so : " Stanton, you have
been a good friend and a ffuthful public servant, and
it is not for you to say when you will no longer be
needed here." Mr. Carpenter, who relates this story,
says that the friends present shed tears over the
President's demonstmtion. This severo-mannered,
proud, unyielding man, who had been taken into his
Cabinet, had learned to revere his power and admire
his character, felt his loss as deeply as any other
man, and was, perhaps, as much disposed to avenge
his death. When the generous Chief had fallen, he
knelt at his side soliloquizing : " Am I, indeed, left
alone? None may now ever know or tell what we
have suffered together in the Nation's darkest hoars."
When the Surgeon-General said to bim that there was
no hope, he could not believe. "No, no, General,
no, no !" was the passionate response of this greatest
of American War Secretaries.
But dismissing the unanimous Cabinet, it may be
well to glance for a moment at the opinions of two
or three other men, among the hundreds who wrote
and talked. George Bancroft, the historian, thus
spoke in New York : —
" Those who oome after ns will decide bow moeh of
the wonderful results of his public career is due to faia own
good oommoD sense, his shrewd sagacity, readiness of wit,
ov Google
590 LIFE AND TIUE8 OF
qnick interpretation of the public mind, hia rare combi-
nation of fixedness and pliancy, his steady tendency of
'purpose; how much to the American people, who, as he
walked with them side by side, inspired him with their
own wisdom and energy; and how much to the overruling
laws of the moral world, by which the selfishness of evil
is made to defeat itself. But after every allowance, it will
remain that members of the Government which preceded
his Administration opened the gates of treason, and he
closed them ; that when he went to Washington the ground
on which he trod shook under his feet, and he left the Re-
public OD a solid foundation ; that traitors had seized pub-
lic forts and arsenals, and he recovered them for the
United States, to whom they belonged; that the Capitol,
which he found the abode of slaves, is now the borne only
of the free; that the boundless public domain which was
grasped at, and, in a great measure, held for the diffusion
of slavery, is now irrevocably devoted to freedom; that
then men talked a jargon of a balance of power in a Re-
public between Slave States and Free Slates, and now the
foolish words are blown away forever by the breath of
Maryland, Missouri, and Tennessee; that a terrible cloud
of political heresy rose from the abyss, threatening to hidC'
the light of the sun, and under its darkness a rebellion
was rising into indefinable proportions; now the atmos-
phere is purer than ever before, and the insurrection is
vanishing away ; the country is cast into another mold, and
the gigantic system of wrong, which had been the work
of more than two centuries, is dashed down, we hope for-
ever. And as to himself personally, he was then scoffed
at by the proud as unfit for his station, and now, against
the usage of later years, and in spite of numerous compet-
itors, he was the unbiased and the nndoubted choice of
the American people for a second term of service. Through
all the mad business of treason he retained the sweetness
of a most placable disposition ; and the slaughter of myr-
ovGoO'^lc
ABRAHAM USCOJJS. 591
iads of the beat on the battle-field, and the more terrible
destraction of oar men in captivity hj the slow torture of
exposure aad starvation, bad never been able to provoke
him into harboring one vengeful feeling or one purjwse
of cruelty."
In an address delivered in Boston, Ralph Waldo
Emerson said : —
" A plain man of the people, extraordinary fortnne at-
tended him. Lord Bacon §ays: 'Manifest virtues procure
reputation ; occult ones, fortune.' He offered no shining
qualities at the first encounter; he did not offend by su-
periority. He had a &oe and manner which disarmed sus-
picion, which inspired confidence, which confirmed good
vi)l. He was a man without vices. He had a strong
sense of duty, which it was very easy for him to obey.
Then he had what formers call a long head ; was excellent
in working oat the sum for himself; in arguing his case,
and convincing yoa fairly aud firmly.
"Then it turned out that he was a great worker; had
prodigious faculty of performance ; worked easily. A
good worker is so rare ; everybody has some disabling
quality. In a host of young men that start together, and
promise so many brilliant leaders for the next age, each
&ils on trial; one by bad health, one by conceit or by
love of pleasure, or by lethai^, or by a hasty temper —
each has some disqualifying fault that throws him out of
the career. But this man was sound to the core, cheer-
ful, persistent, all right fhr labor, and liked nothing so well.
" Then be had a vast good-nature, which made him
tolerant and accessible to all; fair-minded, leaning to the
claim of the petitioner; afiable, and not sensible to the
affliction which the innumerable visits paid to him, when
President, would have brought to any one else. And
how this good-nature became a noble humanity, in many
a tragic case which the events of the war brought to him,
ov Google
S92 LIFE AND TIMES OF
every one will remember, and with whftt inoreuing ten-
deniess be dealt, when a whole race was thrown od his
cooapaseioD. The poor negro said of him, on an impres-
sive occasion, ' Massa Liokum am everywhere.'
" Then his broad good-humor, running easily into joc-
ular talk, ill which he delighted, and in which he excelled,
was a rich gifl to this wise man. It enabled him to keep
his secret, to meet every kind of man and every rank in
society, to take off the edge of the severest decisions to
mask his own purpose and sound his companion, and to
catch with trne instinct the temper of every company he
addressed. And, more than all, it is to a man of severe
labor, in anxious and exhaoetiog crises, the natural re-
storative, good as sleep, and is the protection of the over-
driven brain against rancor and insanity.
" He is the anthor of a mnltitnde of good sayings, so
disguised as pleasantriee that it is certain they had no
reputation at first but as jests ; and only later, by the very
aooeptanoe and adoption they find in the mouths of mill-
ions, turn out to be the wisdom of the hour. I am sure
if this man had ruled in a period of leas &cility of print-
ing, he would have become mythol<^ical in a very few
years, like .^op, or Pilpay, or one of the Seven Wise
Masters, by hia febles and proverbs.
" But the weight and penetration of many passages in
his letters, messages, and speeches, hidden now by the very
closeness of their application to the moment, are destined
hereafter to a wide fame. What pregnant definitions;
what unerring common sense ; what foresight, and on great
occasions, what lofty, and more than national, what humane
tone I His brief speech at Gettysburg will not easily be
surpassed by words on any recorded occasion
" It can not be said there is any exaggeration of hia
worth. If ever a man was fairly tested, he was. There
was no lack of resistance, nor of slander, nor of ridicule.
The times have allowed no State secrets; the Nation haa
ovGoO'^lc
A6R&HAU LINCOLN. 593
been in euoh a ferment, such muUitndes had to be trusted,
that DO secret oonid be kept. Every door waa ajar, and
we knew all that befell.
" Then wbat an oocaaion was the whirlwind of the war !
Here was place for no holiday magistrate, no fair-weather
sailor; the new pilot was hurried to the helm in a tor-
nado. In four years — the four years of battle daya — his
endurance, his fertility of < resources, hie magnanimity,
were sorely tried and never found wanting.
" There, by his courage, bis justice, his even temper,
bis fertile counsel, his humanity, he stood an heroic figure
in the center of an heroic epoch. He is the tnie history
of the American people in his time. Step by step he
walked before them ; slow with their slowness ; quicken-
ing his march by theirs; the true representative of this
continent; an entirely public man ; father of his country;
the pulse of twenty millions throbbing in his heart, the
thought of their minds articulated by his tongue."
Charles Godfrey Leiand says : " Whatever the de-
fects of Lincoln's character were, it may be doubted
whether tiiere was ever so great a man who was, on
the whole, so good." The same writer also says of
Mr. Lincoln: "Born to extreme poverty, and with
fewer opportunities for culture than are open to any
British peasant, he succeeded, by sheer perseverance
and determination, in making himself a land-surveyor,
a lawyer, a politician, and a President."
Thus men plant standards ' of judgment, and the
world follows where inclination directs. Neither
greatness nor goodness did Mr. Lincoln ever claim,
and, perhaps, few men who have arisen to distinc-
tion were more thoroughly and constantly pushed
and borne forward by their friends at every step
ov Google
594 LIFE AND TIUES OF
than was he. In common parlance, in the onoritioal,
loose, every-day ways of speaking, Mr. Lincoln was,
perhaps, both great and good. But really how few
and far between are the tests under which any man
may appear great and good I How few men, in all
our history, in the history of the world, have been
able to stand these tests !
It is not the design here to bring in review, es-
pecially, those acts of Mr. Lincoln's life which may
or may not accurately be deemed great or good ;' the
patient reader of these volumes will not find want-
ing many details in tiie career of this interesting
character, nor will he be able to complain, perhaps,
of a lack of disposition in the author to throw the
best deedii into the best possible light. One of Mr.
Lincoln's distinguishing traits was story-telling, and
in that it will not, probably, be claimed there were
any traces of greatness. He would travel long dis-
tances to hear or tell stories, and he thought this
faculty of great service to him. In this he was,
perhaps, not mistaken. He told stories, in season
and out of season, and sometimes they were offens-
ive to men who felt that their own moods were not
BO trifling, or that he did not understand the demands
of his office and the times.
In his earlier day's, before he reached the Pres-
idency, many of his stories were lacking in some of
the elements of purity, but there is not a shadow
.of evidence that he ever liked them fur their vulgar-
ity. It was because they so pertinently met the
case in hand. It was the unanswerable keenness in
ovGoO'^lc
ABRAHAM UNCOLN. 595
them, and not the vulgarity, which pleased him. The
point is not a difficult one, and even men without
wit can appreciate it. Between Mr. Lincoln's cojiraer
stories and his personal habits there was no connec-
tion. One did not point to the other. It would be
difficult to find. ft man whose social and private life
. was more absolutely clean and pure, in every con-
ceivable sense of the term, than that of Abraham
Lincoln at all stages of his career. In him personal
and social cleanness was not inconsistent with ques-
tionable story-telling. It would not be safe to say,
perhaps, that the majority of men could be secure
in imitating him in this practice, and here may be
caught a glimpse of his saperiority. He made va-
rious uses of his stories, and, in some particulars,
they seemed to serve him well even as President.
When he would avoid a difficolt question, or a direct
answer, or one for which he was not prepared, or
which he should not make from the nature of the
case or times, he was siire to be reminded of a
story, and this served to reUeve him at the moment.
His story-telling often, too, relieved him of the
weight of anxiety which rested upon him, and this,
those who knew him best, finally came to understand
and appreciate. He was not an original story-teller.
That is, his stories were mainly second-himded ; he
did not invent them. It is a mistake to say that he
drew on bis imagnation for many of his stories.
Even this species of falsity would not have been
tolerable to him. He was a truth-teller before h?
was a story-teller. He adapted many of his stories
ov Google
6 LIFE AND TIMES OF
the occasion and ciroamstiinces, bat if he mana-
ctured any of them, it was from facts, and incidents
ited to the case. Several different collections of
3 stories have been published, and many have been
tributed to bim which he never told.
In 1854, or tbereabonta, Mr. Lincoln joined a
mperance society, bnt he did not attend its meet-
gs, and although he hated whisky he was never in-
ined to make a fuss about it. He did not aphold
mperiince or sumptuary legislation, and was not in
is respect consistent with hia own practices. He did
it use tobacco in any form, or have any other nn-
ean habits, nor indulge in any sensual extremes.
Mr. Lincoln's thirst was for fame. This was the
[-absorbing passion of his life. In his unattractive
yhood he had dreamed of it, and all through the
ter struggles which carried bim to the pinnacle, it
IS the source of his inspiration. He yearned for
>sition, and liked to be honored. He thought ev-
ything, and everybody wrong that came across Jiis
ly to distinction. Everything he did, no matter
iw trifling, pointed to his own advancement in pub-
; favor. His day and night dream was of himself
id his glory. This was Mr. Lincoln's great fault,
though it was not without mitigating conditions,
e fully believed the road to fame lay through a
e of certain supreme uses, and in devotion to truth
id justice. The fame he desired was to be founded
Qong these things. Mr. Lincoln never could have
parated fame from a life of right deeds, _sach as
s moral sense led him to believe men should admire;
ovGoO'^lc
ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 597 .
nor conlcl he have associated it with acts not bene-
ficial to bis race. When he had gained the Presidency,
he had reached the beginning of the end of his
dream, and a change came over the natare of hia strug-
gle for fame. After n time he found what he had
never before possessed, and this corrected his strong
vein of selfishness, as may be seen in the chapter on
his religion. If his earlier public life had been
spent largely in his own interests, his last years
were devoted to the good of the human family and
his country.
"M^. President" now grated harshly on his ear.
To his friends he sud, sometimes : " Call me Lincoln,
and ni never tell that the rules of etiquette were
broken." The President's Mansion he spoke of as
"Here" or "This place," his business or o£BciaI room
he called the "Shop," and the President's room at
the Capitol, he was accustomed to speak of as " The
room they call the President's." No man was now
considered in his way. He threw the responsibility
of the various departments on his Cabinet Ministers,
and all the honor there was in the positions they
held he desired them to have. He interfered only
where he felt that he should do so, being responsi-
ble for the whole, and often he assumed the public
censure when it should have rested on other shoul-
ders. To the man who was said to have spurned
him as a lawyer, he became warmly attached, more
than to any member of his council, and no greater
display of will power could have been possible than
the devotion with which he hung to all of these
ov Google
S LIFE AND TIMES OF
in amidst the public cry of distrust, and in favor
removal. No wonder Mr. Seward would say that
esident Lincoln was the hest man he ever knew.
! gave him every opportunity to gain in the esti-
ition of the people. When he did not want to
ike a speech, as was usually the case, he would say :
ieward, go out and give them some of your poetry."
i would have stood out of the road to the Pres-
sncy for any of them. To the aspiring generals
only said. Do something, fight great battles, whip
; rebels, save the conntry, and the people will
le care of you; yon shall be President, shall de-
've to be; and he was ready to throw up his hat
d push them. For the last two years the whole
rden of his life was, " What I do or forbear, I do
forbear because I believe it best for the country."
! stood in no man's way. He had reached the
il, and although at times, as he saw the power of
i Rebellion giving away, he had gleams of a sun-
iny end to his long Administration, in which he
uld be happier than be had been, yet he was ever
iurring to his old dream of fate. "He never could
glad again," was a feeling he could not always
ike off, and this aided in bending his form, sil-
ring his hair, and deepening the farrows in his
inkled face.
In Mr. Lincoln's dream of power, success, honor,
jre had always been a final scene of misfortune or
ath to him. The gory specter always stood at the
le of the angel of glory. At first this had been
tnifest destiny, at last it was the finger of Provi-
ovGoO'^lc
ABRAHAU LINCOLN. S99
dence. He was, in a measure, reconciled. He wanted
no protection, no guards. Such things were not dem-
ocratic; and then, he woald certainly end the work
he had to do. Whatever change for the better came
over his religious faith, his invagination was still sick
and distorted. In the picture there were two ends,
a good one and a bad one.
But had he any grounds for such a scheme of
life and death for himself more than most other
men, even the most ordinary of them? From the
day he set his foot in the settlement at New Salem
to the night of his assassination, he had no cause to
" drip sorrow from his steps," as Mr. Hemdon says
of him. He had no cause for anything but joy and
blessing. Everything that occurred to him should
have given him elasticity and vigor in his walk be-
fore the world. His face should have shone like
the sun. His successes were wonderful. They were
wonderful to himself. Friends stood thick on all
sides of him. Their hands were always extended to
help him. They were fascinated with him, while he
mainly appeared to think of and labor for himself. -
He thought of going up himself, and seemed to care
little to see others going. He seldom gave a he*lp-
ing hand, and those who had and those who had not
he treated alike. The good that others did for him
he forgot in thinking of the good they ought to do
him. If he once thanked them he never thought of
it again. Good deeds deserved nothing at his hands ;
bad ones he absolutely despised. Even Dennis
Hanks suspected him of hypocrisy, but was gener-
ov Google
UFE AMD TIMES OF
enough to say that he might be mistaken aboat
And DenniB was mistaken.
iHny things to Lincoln were without substance,
he could not like them. He found no delight
hat suited narrow, little minds. So, after 1850,
i'en before, he took little or no interest in local
ics. He cared little who was elected. The
1 things of the community barely deserved his
;e. There was no great principle in any of these
;s. At home in Illinois he was not a charitable
barely ment»Uy so. He gave nothing sys-
tically, even when he could. Hardly did he give
uoral support to the building of the community,
ice, education, arts, general progress, were not
les to him. He seldom talked of them. His
i was politics, and he was the center of that
i. But he was no demagt^ue. He went straight
Eird. When he was once a Whig he was always a
;. In his " House-divided-against-itself Speeuh "
ook his grand stand, and from this he never
ved. In his political scheme justice and right
absolute, and honesty was his religion,
[e could never take what did not belong to him,
was ever slow to receive the homage and praise
ad appeared to prize above everything else. In
matter of honesty, however, Mr. Lincoln was,
aps, not perfect. While he took nothing from
which they claimed as their own, he neglected
ive them what they had a right to expect, a
ty return of love, sympathy, help, cheerfulness,
contentment. His sadness was, to some extent,
ovGoO'^lc
ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 601
inherited, but it was not incurable. The world has
a right to expect cheerful couuteuanceB, and manly
words and steps. What right has any man to burden
and sadden the world with his little sorrows? The
ills of oae man are not to be held against those of
the world. Mr. Lincoln's sorrows were baseless, and
had they been real, he had no right to make them
the property of other people. A brave, wise, good,
and unselfish man, strictly speaking, would never do
such a thing. One of Mr. Lincoln's friends took this
story from his mouth : —
"It was just aft«r my election in ISfiO, when the news
had been comiog in thick and fast all day, and there had
been a great ' Hurrah, boys I' so that I was well tired out,
and went home to rest, throwing myself down on a lounge
in my ehamber. Opposite where I lay was a i)ureau, with
a swinging-glass upon it, and looking in that glass, I saw
myself reflected, nearly at full length ; but my face I no-
ticed had two separate and distinct images, the tip of the
nose of one being about three inches from the tip of the
other. I was a little bothered, perhaps startled, and got
up and looked in the glass, but the illusion vanished. On
lying down again I saw it a second time — plainer, if possi-
ble, than before ; and then I noticed that one of the faces
was a little paler, say five shades, than the other. I got
up and the thing melted away, and I went off, and, in the
excitement of the hour, forgot all about it — nearly, but
not quite ; for the thing would once in a while come np,
and give me a little pang, as though something uncomfort-
able had happened. When I went home I told my wife
shout it, and a few days after I tried the experiment
again, when, sure enough, the thing came again ; but I
never succeeded in bringing the ghost back after that,
though I once tried very industriously to show it to my
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LIFE AHD TIMES OF
irho was worried about it somewhat. She thought
s eign that I waa to be elected to a secoad term of
and that the paleness of one of the faces waa an
that I should not see life through the last term.'"
s poor wife joined him in h.i8 fatalistic dreams,
ras seer enough to say that this vision meant
■election and bis tragic death. And did he not
e it? When be entered the White House he
L "the one thing needful" to correct the dark
of bis life, and make him a model to his race,
td erected his own standards, and if be did not
mplicitly apon them, be did not take to those
lier men. Men were only bis instruments;
; them be bad no models. But be was not a
without a heart, and so prominent did his heart
l)ecom6 during bis best days (the period in
bis irreligion and selfishness largely melted
, that it has been a question among men
er his heart or his cold intellect shaped his
ct as President.
le matter of gratitude is a thing about which
any-sided world has given itself much trouble,
lany men have held to the notion that Mr. Lin-
pas without this somewhat exaggerated virtue.
£ed or loved mankind as a whole, or in the ab-
much more than in the individual. He was
r and gentle without talking of love. He ex-
id bis own general trait most truly when he
le did what he did " with malice toward none,
ith charity for all;" and in the following words
te all of his beautiful philosophy of gratitude : —
ovGoO'^lc
ABRAHAM LINCOLN.
"My friends yoa owe me no gratUnde for what 1 1
done ; and I, I may say, owe yoa no gratitude for \
yon have done; just as, in a sense, we owe no gratii
to tbe men who have fought our battles for us. 1 1
tbat this has all been for us all a work of duty."
Gratitude he now held was due to the Great Gi
of all gifts. To do what was just and rigbt and I
and fit was Teasooably to be exacted and expet
of man, and io tbe doing should he find his deli
and reward.
What was true and good he came to venerate
tensely, if he did not always do so, and this was
of his distinguishing traits. And akin to it was
strong sense of right and justice. Mere friends
and all ordinary considerations gave way bel
these. The title of " Honest Abe" he deserved, s
perhaps, he esteemed it more than all else. To h
earned this title must go far in the estimation of
world, and on the pages of history, in fixing his n;
among the few who may justly be called "the gr
the wise, and the good.
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LIFE AND TIMES OF
CHAPTER? XXVII.
INCOLN'S REUGION— LOOK AT THIS UAN OF SOR-
ROW—WHAT VERDICT ?
i not difBcult for an ordiaarily well-balanced
iQ to be good to others when he has more than
mts for himself. A full man, like a full horse,
readily be generous. A starving man is not
y different from other animals under like cir<
ances. The laws of mental and spiritual life
pon the same general footing as the physical,
Lre explained by them. Genuine goodness is
> circumscribed, nor is eelfisbness so much dif-
, as many suppose. In the first successful
I of Mr. Lincoln's life he seemed to doubt, at
, whether any of his acts were unselfish. When
t himself to great trouble to relieve a suffering
,1 or man, it was to relieve a pang or distress
Dself caused by the pain of the other. This he
ht was selfishness. So have thought other
iided men. This is one of the most foolish
sms of the sophists. One man looks at another
:n or misfortune, and he is himself disturbed,
i, or his sympathies are aroused. Were he
r selfish this result could not follow. He would
This is not my business ; I am proof against
ovGoO'^lc
ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 605
things of this kind. When be has felt at all, and
knows that he has, he has pat the seal of falsehood
OD the theory of selfishness. If he puts forth his
hand to give aid, he relieves an aobidden pang in
himself, one to which selfishness coald not have given
birth. To the other a benefit follows, and the de-
light is mutual. Would not a purely selfish creature
have power to relieve himself of pain, or the uneasi-
ness of sympathy, by taking some other coarse, one
giving him no trouble, work, or self-denial ? Should
he not say. Let the plant lie; if it droops and dies
there are more flowers to brighten the path which I
am traveling; the lame brute or the unfortunate man,
what are their sorrows to me ? The pang disappears,
does it not ? Is it not lost in the forgetfulness and
easy philosophy of selfishness ? Is ao act done for
a purpose a selfish one ? Is a motive the necessary
sign of selfishness? What folly I The character of
the motive is only a matter of question. The pain
in one arising from sight of pain in another is geo-
nine sympathy; otherwise it would not be pain.
Selfishness does not torture itself. It courte no sor-
row, admits none. The hand extended in relief is
impelled by the motive to do good, to serve another.
Selfishness may have no hand in the act. Selfish-
ness is not bound to act in that way. If it had a
pang it could and would choose another course for
its relief, one in harmony with its nature. If it
merely assumed a pang without its real existence, in
the hope or desire of ultimate sole self-benefits, then
there would be no question about the motive or the
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LIFE AND TIMES OF
er of the deed, and we would enter the realm
sputed, unmitigated selfishness.
re are no overburdened or oppressed individ-
the providence of God.
re are no favored individaals in the providence
these two great axiomatic propositions Mr.
stumbled all his life. The reverse of these
: to be true, some way, notwithstanding his
levotioD to what he deemed pnncipleB of jus-
1 right. He considered himself a man of sor-
he weight of his father's hand was always on
[. The ignorance and poverty of his parents
to be a burden to him in after life. His love
Irew him into fits of insanity, from which be
id with additional burdens on his shoulders,
ally he felt that the fates had driven him
ttarriage which he could not nnd must not
nd in this he deemed himself doomed to walk
ad of sadness.
le unmanly whims diseased his mind; and
B viewed himself in a political aspect he only
k double reflections from his mirror of sor-
Fate had here, too, fixed upon him a burden
le could not and would not shake oflf, and
nust land him ultimately in the darkness of
He waa the servant of the people, and in
struggle, a decree and principle of fate, he
lie for them. In him, bodily, the great nnd
issible conflict " was first waged. The people
s instruments. He was the central figure in
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ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 607
an his calculatioDS. G-od or fate, much the same to
him, so indicated ; and when the burden fell from his
back the drama would end, in evit to him and good
to mankind. Hour after hour he spent in confirming
himself in these gloomy and evil fnocies. His
moments of gloom, his dark, black, " terrible,'* "ter-
rible" moments, were those in which he sat dream-
ing of himself, dreaming of his sorrows, of responsi-
bilities, of evils, of crosses, suifering, honors, glories,
death, oncertaiiity, and n^ht, irretrievable, godless
night. When he worked, worked hard incessantly,
told stories, and was merry, he was a man, and only
then. Even then it was hard to keep the dark
shadows from creeping over bim. His houi-s of sad-
ness were the most precious. There he built dark
castles, in which he groped as a Giant Despair. Here
was a perpetual fantasy. And the man who had
taken a pride in being called the "Sangamon Chief,"
who could throw or whip any man in the county
or State, a towering king among men, as animals,
was lost with himself as a spiritual or intellectual
being.
I hold that any sane, intelligent man may sit
down and build a castle in the air; it may, indeed, be
to surround himself with untold wealth, with which
he rears beautiful edifices dedicated to religion, art,
science, music, charity ; clothes the naked, feeds the
hungry, makes friends and foes alike happy, and,
against his will, causes all men to rise up and call
him blessed; may repeat this dream, day after day,
until the "baseless fabric" will not fly away at his
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3 LIFE AND TIMES OF
IdtDg, and insanity claioi a new sabject from the
9r beautiful and healthful domain of god-like reason..
Here was Mr. Lincoln at fault more than any
ler President of the United States, or indeed, any
)er man who hns risen to distinction in this country.
L the things which are here enumerated before his
litical burdens, so conceived, came upon him, and
lich were the introduction to all other gloomy
ors in his life, were things that are common to the
s of men.
Who has not been thwarted in his early loves?
tw many have not fought with poverty? Where
?e been the dwellings of the wise? Where has
t ignorance stalked at noonday ? How many
ve escaped the misfortunes of imperfect parentage?
iiat youth has not considered his own evils and
rdships very considerable and onerous? What
r cent of all marriages is wisely made and per-
tly harmonious and blissful ? Why, if all men were
unwise as Abraham Lincoln then was, the world
uld be a vast lunatic asylum. Most brave men,
m ordinary ones, have fought these common little
;tles, and gone on stronger for it, and have been
e to help the world on a little, by having them-
res made some progress in learning *' to be, and to
and to suffer."
The worst and the best of it all about this dream-
i dreams of glory and misfortune was, that they
ae trae. Every step served to convince him that
I next was certain and nnavoidable. Without long
irs of preparation he entered the White House.
ovGoO'^lc
ABRAHAM LINCOLN.
This humble rail-splitter from the West) He
dreamed of this day. And now could the resi
to follow ?
In what may. be called Mr. Lincoln's relij
life there were, however, two distinct epochs,
of these counterbalanced or neutralized the o
They may be designated as the evil and the
epochav the first extending from his boyhood tc
election as President, »ad the other embracing
years he spent in the White House. Howi
much stress has been placed upon the' teachings
good influence of his "sainted mother," it does
appear that Lincoln was saved or even greatly t
Bted by them. SalHe Bush, his step-mother,
have given a new direction to his manly inst
and his aspirations, about gaining distinction ii
world, but that she succeeded in fixing him in
principles of Christianity, .or that she either had
ability, or a very lively inclination, to do so, is
shown by evidence in her life or his. His first
in oratory was in the ridicule of poor preaching,
gar and unrefined preaching, and poor preaci
coarse nnd illiterate preachers, that then aboun
and with whom the world is yet, perhaps. sufBcie
aflSicted. His purpose in hearing a sermon see
to he to gratify his faculty of imitation and ricli
To this end, to some extent, he read the B
Much of it he had in his mind, and what he ha<
handled as he did the coarse things with whici
labored. It was the only book that was always
of access. The divinity of the Scriptures he did
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LIFE AND TIMES OF
lis passion for reading was gratified. When
ired from Indiana, if he had principles in
they were not positive, if they were not
itian. At New Salem he " fell among rob-
entered a " den of thieves," and these he
dropping what he had. In a race of infi-
ioon outran all teachers.
34, or 1835, he wrote, it is strongly claimed,
iper or pamphlet constituting what he termed
ent against the Bible and Christianity. This
nee he exhibited to Samuel Hill and his
J Salem merchants. The son thought it
he hoands of ordinary execration, and Hitl
e manuscript into the fire, and bOrned it
e author's face. Hill believed that Lincoln
^ptihle of rising to a great future, and this
it came to light, would kill him utterly, as
id to do. Thus ended this matter, and the
ver knew much about it, not enough to be
f certain of its truth, and Lincoln took alarm
md became too politic to make another
although he talked about his pamphlet to
■ his " friends."
iringfield his associations were irreligiously
I those of New Salem, and uU Ihrough his
ticiil career his position, or supposed posi-
a cause of weakness, which gave him no
oyance, rendering him still more reticent
ic. In 1840 even, he had courted the good
f the clergy, and, perhaps, deceived them,
ixtent, as to his real views. He ceased to
ovGoO'^lc
ABRAHAM UNCOUf. (
make hiotself kaown in this matter to his frien<
even to his infidel frieDds, even to Herndon, 'w
has written so much about Mm, and whose grt
ambition appeared to be to prove that Mr. Liucf
was an infidel, and opposed to technical Chrislianil
But however reliable the testimony Mr. Hernd
was able to give, up to 1840, perhaps 1856, he ceas
to be reliable after that time. Then, he knew tl
Lincoln's religion was as bad as his own, if not won
He admits that Lincoln not only ceased to confi
this thing, but most of the real workings of his 1
to bim; then, how could he have known what th
were ? His inference that Lincoln held out in 1
former ways to the end, is not established either
his assertion or the supposed proofs he has give
That Lincoln believed in God and immortality Hei
don never doubted, and he believed Ihe letter
John D. Johnston, as to his father's preparation 1
death, proves this fact beyond a doubt. And so
did, if Mr. Lincoln was not a hypocrite. But ^
Herndon's falling back upon this kind of eviden
shows plainly enough how little he really km
about what Mr. Lincoln was feeling and thinking.
Mr. Lamon, who was much with Mr. Lincoln a
knew as little about him, in this respect, as ar
body, and who took Hemdon for his guide, put mu
stress on the opinion of John G. Nicolay, to t
effect that Mr. Lincoln did not change his religio
views after entering the White House. But J
Nicolay had no opportunity to know what Mr. L
coin's opinions were then, and he knew very Utt
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lftt2 LtPE AND TUI88 OF
subsequently, abont what iMr. Linotdn was doing rtn
thia reepect.
Jesse W. Fell, one of the most reliable writers on
this sabject, was of the opinion that Mt. Lincoln's
views on most points were directly opposite to tbe
precepts of what is termed orthodoxy, and henoe
would have been classed as entirety out of the pale
of Christianity. But said Mr. Fell : " To my mind,
such waa not the true position, since his principles
and practices and the spirit of his whole life ww«
of the very kind we universally agree to call Chris-
tian; and I think this conclusion is in no wise af-
fected by the circumstance that he nevw attached
himself to any religious society whatever."
About the time of Mr. Lincoln's election to tbe
Presidency, Mr. Newton Bateman, State Superintend-
ent of Education, thinking that the moment had
come to give a new direction to Mr. Lincoln's relig-
ion in the estimation of the world, took the lask
upon himself. Dr. Holland gives this statement of
the matter substantially from Mr. Biiteman: —
"Mr. Newton BatemaD, Superintendent of Public Instruo-
tioD for tbe State of Illinois, occapied a room adjoining and
opening into tbe Executive Chamber. Frequeotlj this diior
was open during Mr. Lincoln's receptions ; and throughout the
sevea months or more of his occupation, Mr. Bateman san him
Dearly every day. Often, when Mr. Lincoln waa tired, he cloeed
big door against all intrusioD, and called Mr. Bateman into bis
room for a quiet talk. On one of theae occa«ODB Hr. Lincola
tookupabookcontaioiug a careful canvass of the city of Spring-
field in which he lived, showing the candidate for whom each
citizen had declared it his intention to vote in the approadiing
election. Mr. Lincoln's friends had, doubUeee at his owa
ovGoO'^lc
ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 6l3
i, pdaoed tlieresult of tbecaiiTiise in his haDda. This was
bnnrd the doee of October, and only a few days before the
electiota. Calling Mr. Bateman to a seat at bis side, having
previously locked all the doors, he said : 'Let us look over this
book. I wisb particularly t« see bow the ministers of Spring-
field are going to vote.' The leaves were turned, one by one,
and as the names were examined Mr. Lincolo frequently asked
if this one and that were not a minist«r, or an elder,. or the
member of such or such a Church, and sadly expressed bis sui^
prise on receiving an affirmative answer. In that manner they
went through the book, and then he closed it and sat silently,
and for some minutes regarding a memorandum in pencil nhich
lay before him. At length he turned to Mr. Batemau with a
face full of sadness, and said: ' Here are twenty-three ministers,
of different denominations, and all of them are against me but
three ; and here are a great many prominent members of the
Churches, a very large majority of whom are against me. Mr.
Bateman, I am not a Christian — God knows I would be one —
but I have carefully read the Bible, and I do not so understand
tliis book ;' and he drew from his bosom a pocket New Testa-
ment. ' These men well know,' he continued, ' that I am for
freedom in the territories, freedom everywhere as far as the
OoDStitutiDD and laws will permit, and that my opponents are
for slavery. They know this, aud yet, with this luxik in their
hands, in the light of which human bondage can not live a mo-
ment, they are going to vot« against me. I do not understand
it at all.'
" Here Mr. Lincoln paused — paused for long minutes, his
features surcharged with emotion. Then he rose and walked
np and down the room in the effort t^} retain or regun his self-
possession. Stopping at last, he ^id, with a trembling voice,
and his cheeks wet with tears: ' I know there is a Qod, and
that be hates injustice, and slavery. I see the storm coming,
and I know that His hand is in it. If he has a place and work
for me — and I think he has — I believe I am ready. I am noth-
ing, but truth is every Uiing. I know I am right, because I
know that liberty is right; for Christ teaches it, and Christ is
God. I have told them that a honse divided i^inst itself can
Dot stand, and Christ and reason say the same ; and they will
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i LIFE AND TIMES OF
1 it BO. Douglas do o't care whether slavery is voted ap »
sd down, but God cures, and luimanity cares, and I care ; and
li God's help I »'htill nut fHil. I may not eee (he eod ; but it
come, and I shall be viudicated ; aad these men will find
t they have not read their Bibles aright.'
"Much of this W86 tittered us if he were speaking to him-
, and with a sad and earnest solemnity of manner imposd-
to be described. After a pause, he resumed : ' Doeso't it
ear strauge that men can ignore the moral aspects of this
test? A revelation could not make it plainer to me that
ery or the government must be destroyed. The future
lid be something awful, as I look at it, but for this rock on
ch I stand' (alluding to the Testament which he still held
lis hand), ' especially with the knowledge of how these min-
rs are going to vote. It seems as if God had boruc with
thing (slavery) until the very teachers of religion have
,e to defend it from the Bible, and to claim for it a divine
racter and sanction ; and now the cup of iniquity is full,
the vials of wrath will be poured out.'
" His last reference was to certain prominent clei^ymen in
South, Drs. Ross and Palmer among the number; and be
t on to comment on the atrociousness and essential bias-
my of their attempts to defend American slavery from the
le. After this the conversation was continued for a long
i. Every thing he said was of a peculiarly deep, tender,
religious tone, and all was tinged with a touching melan-
y. He repeatedly referred to his conviction that the day
rratb was at hand, and that be was to be an actor in the
ihle struggle which would issue in the overthrow of slavery,
igh he might not live to see the end. He repeated many
ages of the Bible, and seemed specially impressed with the
mn grandeur of portions of Revelation, describing the wrath
Umighty God. In the course iif the conversation, he dwelt
:h upon the necessity of faith iu the Chrtstiui's God, as an
lent of successful statesman ship, especially in times like
e which were upon him, and said that it gave that calmness
tranquillity of mind, that assurance of ultimate succees,
ch made a man firm and immovable amid the wildest ex-
ments. After further reference to a belief in Divine Provi-
ovGoo'^lc
■ ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 615
deDce, and the fact of Ood in history, \he coDTeisation turned
upon prayer. He freely stated his belief in the duty, privilege,
and bffiqjtcy of prayer, and intimated, in no unmistakable terms,
that he had sought in that way the Divine guidance and iavor.
"The effect of this conversation upon the mind of Mr. Bate-
man, a Christian gentleman whom Mr. Lincoln profoundly re-
spected, was to convince him that Mr. Lincoln had, in his quiet
way, found a path to the Christian etand-poiut — that he had
found God, and rested on the eternal truth of God. As the
two men were about two separate, Mr. Bateman remarked :
'I have not supposed that you were accustomed to think so
much upon this class of subjects. Certainly your friends gener-
ally are ignorant of the aentimentfi you have expressed to me.' "
And, of course, Dr. Holland and most other Chris-
tian people adopted this view of the case. It was
best and most agreeable. It wns best for Mr. Lin-
coln's welfare as President, and most agreeable to
the great body of those who were to uphold him.
Mr. Lamon flatly contradicts this whole story, aad
treats it as a bad piece of fiction. And while it does
seem that Mr. Bateman had drawn on his imagina-
tion, and was willing to risk his own reputation for
the sake of removing an eternal blemish from that of
Lincoln, it may still be held, with some propriety,
that the question of veracity has never been abso-
lutely setUed against Mr. Bateman. After a thorough
and exhnustive consideration of the subject, however,
I am forced to the conclusion that Mr. Bateman's
story was to a great extent fictitious, and that at the
time of Mr. Lincoln's election to the Presidency, he
stood about where Mr. Herndon and that class of
his friends placed him technically; at least, he w.-is
certainly not a Christian, however much like one
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LIFE AND TIMES OF
night have been in many of his pr&o-
Mr. Bateman willfully committed an
>d might come, Mr. Lamon and his
ace of evidence which they were not
)verlookiDg, have gone to the opposite
is hy them asserted that Mr. Liocoln
■ uttered a word which implied the
on his part in Christ as the Savior of
ut that he never even uttered any of
rod, the Savior. How true all of. this
hereafter.
. Lincoln's friends, both early and late,
.0 be very superstitious. And so he
there can always be, or is generally,
' profound or serious in this charge
ubted. Mr. Lincoln believed in "signs
nd dreamed himself into a helpless
belief in "s^s and omens" is not
erstltion; and whether it makes any
tition depends on the nature of the
tns." The man who plants or sows at
1 the month is said to be superstitions
se, but that charge should be made
Hundreds of things once placed under
^nation of superstition, have become
. The mental and spiritual planes
Qftched with distrust, in ignorance and
e, it has been held, fair science does
foundations of those planes are treated
1 mystical. If Mr. Lincoln was never
^ond the things of natural sense, he
:b,GoO'^lc
AKtAHAM UNCOLN. §17
had at all events, a deep, unalterable belief in the
KUpernatural.
But why lay all this stress upon what he believed
in these matters 1 Why should all these discussions,
and this strife hnve arisen about his religious opin-
ions? Was it becaose the friends of Christianity
needed such a supporter? Was it becHU-se the eoe-
ipies of Christianity felt that their bad cnuse would
be greatly benefited by the influence of such a char-
acter? What were his theological opinioas worth?
In theology Mr. Lincoln was an unwise man^ ex-
tremely so. Strictly speaking, he was learned on
few subjects, and less on this than any other. He
really read very few books. During the last four or
five years of his life he read no great modem work.
Two or three humorous works he read thoroughly,
he thought, to relieve hiin from the weight of his
l«bor and troubles. A course of theological reading
he never imposed upon himself. What little he did
read at New Salem and Springfield was in a skeptical
li^e. His theological opinions were uttei'ly worth-
leas, and his position as a religious or irreligious man
could not have weighed as a straw for or against any
cuise. Opinions are viiluable for the weight of evi-
dence they carry with them, for the manner in which
t^ey appeal to intelligent judgment. The weight of
evidence may be sufficiently apparent in the known
character of the indlTidual who expresses the opinion.
A,mong the intelligent, that man may look most for
th« reasonable and fair consideration of his views who
has read the most and to the best advantage, who
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UFE AND TIMES OF
ought the most and the most oaationsly, critio-
,nd correctly. To be worthy of respect, an
I, on any subject, muat appeal to intelligeat
sfined judgment. In theology men wander
ind yet here they set themselves up most,
er dense ignorance may be on other snbjects,
; is likely to be far more dense. The man
3ver reads the Bible, which be often can not
land, or a plain work on religion or theology,
he might stand some little chance of under-
tg, is often the first and loudest in settjng him-
< as "knowing just as much about that as he
le's never been there." If men know little, of
ings immediately before their eyes, and all
their natural senses, how much less may they
ected to know of things seen by eyes and sar-
d by senses they do not believe they possess,
il things with which theology and religion
deal!
3 a matter of titter indifTerence, so far as estab-
the right or the wrong, what ignorant and
■med men believe. So Mr. Lincoln's reading,
:, opportunities, preparation did not fit him for
ogical critic, and hence it was ridiculous at the
to place any stress upon what he was relig-
from what he had studied, thought, reasoned,
I, loved.
ny of those, who, in an earlier day, from 1845
0, talked about and assailed Mr. Lincoln's re-
did it from what they termed the orthodox
f view. And after all, with them, Mr. Lin-
ovGoO'^lc
ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 619
coId's offense eeemed mainly to be want of ortho-
doxy. It was not so much that he lacked in the
elements, or at least many of the practical elements,
of Christian life and character, but that he failed in
answering to the creed. This was one of the barely
possible things with Mr. Lincoln. Nothing could be
more difficult with him than to say, " I believe."
What would satisfy minds of ordinary mold was
often wholly unsatisfactory and out of the question
with Mr. Lincoln. Here, as in most other things, it
was natural fur him not to be a minnow, but to
wander uocaught, like a big fish, in the blue deep.
In the previous pages the first epoch of Mr.
Lincolu's religious character and life, so-called, baa
been presented with some degree of fullness. This
course has appeared necessary from the importance
which has been attached to him in this matter, and
the efforts put forth by a class of good men, who, in
their zeal for his general and unbroken fame, perhaps,
overstepped the boundary of fact to establish for
him a reputation which can hardly be sustained; and
by another class, who, being his friends and admirers,
and claiming the weight of evidence on their side,
have made similar efforts to prove that Mr. Lincoln
remained to the end, what he had formerly been, or
what they bud believed he had been, and such as
they were themselves.
In bis brief farewell words to the people of Spring-
field, February 11, 1861, Mr. Lincoln said : "A duty
devolves upon me which is, perhaps, greater than
that which has devolved upon any other man since,
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620 LIFE AND TIMES OF
the days of Washiagton. He never woiild have sao-
oeeded except for the aid of Divine Providence, upon
which he at all times relied. I feel that I can not
succeed without the same Divine aid which sustained
him, and on the same Almighty Being Z place my
reliance for support; and I hope you, my friends,
will all pray that I may receive that Divine assist-
ance, without which I can not succeed, but with which
success is certain."
These were fortunate words. At the threshold
of the White House he had thus put himself in
relation with the religious world. He dreaded the
tempest which was gathering around him, and felt
that safety could only be found among the friends
of Him whose very word could bring peace from the
storm. His gloomy temperament, his natural hum-
bleness, his strong faith in the supernatural, and the
very evident thread of superstition which ran through
him, in view of what was justly supposed to be his
religious character at that time, may reasonably be
assumed as sufficient foundation for this new depart-
ure, and the world could not have been more pleased,
than were Mr. Lincoln's old friends amazed or non-
plused. But, perhaps, he had never been so serious
before, or felt that he was more true to himself than
when he uttered the Christian- sentiment given here.
There are not 'wanting some evidences that his
preparation had begun a few years before ; and prob-
ably no better proof of this could be needed than is
to be found in the mere fact of his utter conceal-
ment of his religious state from the associates who
:b,GoO'^lc
ABRAHAM LISCOI.N. 621
regarded it as bad, that is, as aati-ChristUa. Id bis
speech at Ghioago, July 10, 1858, Mr. Linoola used
these words : —
" It is said in one of the adiDooitioiis of onr Lord, 'As
your Father id Heaven is perfect, be ye also perfect.'
The Savior, I suppose, did not expect that aoy human
creature could be perfect as the Father in Heaven ; but
He said, 'As your Father in Heaven is perfect, he ye also
perfect.' He aet that up as a standard, and he who did
most in reaching that standard, attained the highest degree
of moral perfection."
Id his speech at Springfield on tlie 17th of the
same month be spoke : —
"He says I have a pronenesa for quoting Scripture.
.If I should do BO now, it occurs that, perhaps, he places
himaelf somewhat on the ground of the parable of the
lost sheep which went astray upon the mountains, and
when the owner of the hundred sheep found the one that
was lost, and threw it upon his shoulders, and came home
rejoicing, it was said that there was more rejoicing over
the one sheep that was lost and bad been found, than over
the ninety and nine in the fold. The application is made
by the Savior in this parable, thue: 'Yerily, I say unto
you, there is more rejoicing in Heaven over one sinner that
repenteth, than over ninety and nine just persons who need
no repentance.' And now if the Judge (Douglas) claims
the benefit of this parable, let him repent. Let him not
come np here and say: ' I am the only just person; and
yon are ninety-nine sinners!' Repentance before forgive-
ness is a provision of the Christian system, and on that
condition alone will the Republicans grant his forgiveness."
From these quotations alone it ia evident that
Mr. Lincoln's extra reading was not all in an infidel
line, or light trasb, or in tbe questionable Boras and
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UFE AND TIMES OF
are, even at th^t period ; and by these alone
Ter fall to the ground the charge that he
sred a word in any of his speeches or other
[itings indicative of the slightest degree of
God, the Savior, or, indeed, that he ever
le Dame of the Savior,
irting with his step-mother in February,
. Lincoln said to her : " Trust in the Lord,
ill be well; we will see each other again."
words are found in his first inaugural ad-
[ntelligence, patriotism, Christianity, and a
nee on Him who has never yet forsaken
ed land, are still competent to Rdjoet, in the
all our present difficulties." This square
in the Christian side must have sounded
to those who claimed him on the other,
aoge already coming over Mr. Lincoln?
speech at Ottawa, August 21, 1868, Mr.
aid: "I know that the Judge may readily
^ree with me that the maxim which was
by the Savior is true, but he may allege
sapply it."
ton, October 16, 1868, in speaking of the
ade by Mr. Douglas on the sentiments of his
ivided-against-itself Speech," Mr. Lincoln
le has warred upon them as Satan wars
Bible."
ng thus chosen oar cause without guile, and
purpose, let us renew oar trust in God, and go
itiiout fear and with maDly hearts." (Closing
irst message, July 4, 1861.)
ovGoO'^lc
ABRAHAM LINCOLN.
"With a reliance on Providence, all the more firm
earnest, let us proceed in the great taek which events li
devolved upon us." (First annual meesage.)
"In full view of my great responsibility to my )
and my country, I earnestly beg the attention of Cong
and the people to the subject." (Message of Marcl
1862, on aiding the States to emancipate the slaves.)
" Whatever shall appear to be God's will I will <
(Reply, in 1862, to a religious emancipation delegati<
While it has not pleased the Almighty to bless us i
the return of peace, we can hut press on, guided by
best light he gives us, trusting that, in His own good t
and wise way, all will be well." (Second annual messa
Here is Mr. Lincolo's order appealing to Gh
Han soldiers, November 16, 1862: —
"The President, Commander-in-Chief of the Army
Navy, desires and enjoins the orderly observance of
Sabbath, by the officers and men in the military and ni
service. The importsnce, for man and beast, of the |
scribed weekly rest, the sacred rights of Christian sold
and sailors, a becoming deference to the best sentin
of a Christian people, and a due regard for the Di'
will, demand that Sunday labor in the army and navj
reduced to the measure of strict necessity. The di.wip
and character of the national forces should not suffer,
the cause they defend be imperiled, by the profanatioi
the day or name of the Most High. 'At this time of pu
distress,' adopting the words of Washington in 1776, 'i
may find enough to do in the service of God and t
country, without abandoning themselves to vice
immorality.' The first general order issued by the Fai
of his Country, after tbe Declaration of Independe
indicates the spirit in which our institutions were foun
and should ever be defended : ' The General hopes
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084 LIFE AND TIMES OF
truat« that eveiy officer and man will endeavor to live and
act as becomec a Christian soldier defending the dearest
Hghts and liberties of his oonntiy.
"Absahau Linoolh."
" In the form approved by their own conacience, render
the homage due to the Divine Majes^, for the wonderfbl
thiols He baa done in the Nation's behalf, and invoke the
influence of His Holy Spirit to subdue the auger which
has produced and so long sustained a needless and cruel
rebellion." (Thanksgiving Proclamation, July 15, 1863.)
" ExEcTTiVB Mansion, Wabhingtok, D. C, 1
" May 9. 1864. (
"To TBI Friends op Union and Libbbtv:—
"Enough is known of array operations, within the last
five days, to claim our special gratitude to God. While
what remains undone demands our most since^ prayers to
and reliance upon Him (without whom all effort is vain),
I recommend that all patriots at Iheir homes, in their
places of public worship, and wherever they may be, unite
in common thanksgiving and prayer lo Almighty God.
"Abraham Lincoij?."
" Gentlemen, — In response to your address, allow me
to attest the accuracy of its historical statements, indorse
the sentiments it expresses, and thank you, in the Nation's
name, for the sure promise it gives. Nobly sustained, as
the Government has been, by all the Churches, I would
utter nothing which might in the least appear invidious
against any. Yet, without this, it may fairly be said that
the Methodist Episcopal Church, not less devoted than the
best, is, by its greater numbers, the most important of alt.
It is no fault in others that the Methodist Church sends
more soldiers to the field, more nurses to the hospitals,
and more prayers to Heaven than any. God bless the
Methodist Church ; bless all the Churches ; and bleassd be
ovGoO'^lc
ABRAHAM LINCOLN. I
Gi)d, who, ID thia onr great trial, giveth us the Chnrohc
{Mr. LiocoId's answer to Methodist Coniereace, M
1864.)
" Id regard to the Great Book, I have ooly to sa;
in the best gifl which God has ever given to man.
the good from the Savior of the world is communicated
us through this book. Bnt for that book, we could
know right iix>m wrong. All those things desirable
man are contained in it I return you sincere thanks
this very elegant co[^ of this great Book of God, wh
you present." (In Mr. Lincoln's remarks to colored n
of Baltimore in 1864.)
" If God now wills the removal of a great wrong, i
wills that we of the North, as well as you of the Soi
shall pay fairly for our complicity in that wrong, im[
tdal history will find therein new causes to attest and
vere the justice and goodness of God." (Letter to A.
Hodges, April, 1864.)
Tliese quotations will serve as Mr. Lincoln's o
testimony as to the growth of his religion. In
last year his proclamations were very numerous, t
the display of religious sentiment was constan
more intense ; nor was it of a character to which i
most orthodox could object. In his last inaugural
siud : " The judgments of the Lord are true and rig
eons altogether." This was Mr. Lincoln's final v
diet. And what was that of his old friends at Spii
field ? They have held out in their eflforts to pn
that he was an infidel, was not a Christian, when
left SpringSeld, and that he made no progress, i
not changed the least in his religious faith and fi
ings at His death. Was he, then, a hypocrite 7 W
all his appeals to God, to Providence, insincere, i
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t UFE AND TIHIS OF
ester to the pnblic demand 7 Did he not aooept^
1, to some extent, carry out the practical precepts
the New Testament ? Did he go out of the bounds
amooly assigned to the Christiao ? Did he avoid
T thing which a ChriBtian people might expect of
Christian President? If his own record while
jsident, on this point, is false, then what becomes
the title of " Honest Abe " in which he so much
ded, and his right to which is not more boldly de-
ded by any one than by Mr. Herndon ? If be
re untrue in this, the rest of his career is nn-
rthy of defense. In nothing else can hypocrisy
so iofamons as in religion, and in nothing else is
experiment of hypocrisy so dangerous to the in-
iduitl who tries it. Was Abraham Lincoln, relig-
sly, a hypocrite? Who will dare to assert it?
en, what WHS he? What do the words fh>m bis
D month prove him to have been ? If the efforts
his infidel friend's are to be taken for all they
;ht be valued at, it then Is only proper to admit,
fully, all his Christian friends claim in the period
y represent, and in which their opportunities for a
rect judgment were much more reliable.
In Crosby's " Life and Public Services of Abra-
n Lincoln," Mr. Lincoln is represented as saying
% clergyman : —
" When I was first ioangurated I did not love Him ;
;d Ood took my sod, I was greatly impressed, but atill
id not love Him; but when I stood upoo the battle-field
Gettysbarg I gave my heart to Christ, and I can now
I do love the Savior."
ovGoO'^lc
ABRAHAM LIKCOLN. 627
Charles Chidfrey Leland says in his '*Iafe of
Abraham Lincoln :" —
"Ab he ^w older, his intensely melauoholy and emo-
tional temperament inclined him towards reliance in an
unseen Provideoce and belief in a future state ; and it is
certain that, after the unpopularity of fi«e-thinkera had
forced itself upon his mind, the most fervidly passionate
expressions of piety began to abound in his speeches. In
this be was not, however, hypocritical."
F. B. Carpenter, the painter of " The Proclama-
tion," a picture representing tJie President laying his
Emancipation Proclamalion before his Cabinet, in his
" Six Months at the White House," says : —
"In the ordinary acceptation of the term, I would
scarcely have called Mr. Lincoln a religious man — and yet
I believe him to have been a sincere Christian. A consti-
tutional tendency to dwell upon sacred things, an emo- .
tional nature which finds ready expression in religions
conversation and revival meetings, the culture and devel-
opment of the devotional element till the expression of
such thought and experience becomes habitual, were not
among bis oharacteriatics. Doubtless be felt as deeply
upon the great qnestiona of the soul and eternity as any
other thoughtful man; but the very tenderness and hu-
mility of his nature would not permit the exposure of his
inmost coovictions, except upon the rarest occasions, and
to his most intimate friends. And yet, aside from emo-
tional expression, I believe no man bad a more abiding
sense of his dependence upon God, or faith in the Divine
government, and in the power and ultimate triumph of
truth and right in the woHd. The Rev. J. P. Thompson,
of New York, in an admirable discourse upon the life and
character of the departed President, very justly observed :
' It is not necessary to appeal to apocryphal stories — which
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28 LIFE A.ND TIMES OF
lugtnte as maofa the aasurance of his visitors as tfae nm-
licity of his feith — for proof of Mr. Lincoln's Christian
li&racter.' If bis daily life and various public addresses
nd writings do not show this, surely nothing can demon-
;rate it.
"Fortunately there is suffioient material before the
iiblic, upon which to form a judgment in this respect,
ithout resorting to apocryphal sources.
" The Rev. Mr. Willets, of Brooklyn, gave me an ac-
>ant of a conversation with Mr. Lincoln, on the part of
lady of hia acquaintance, connected with the 'Christian
lommission,' who in the prosecution of her duties had
fveral interviews with him. The President, it seemed,
ad been much impressed with the devotion and earnest-
ess of purpose manifested by the lady, and on one occa-
on, after she had discharged the object of her visit, be
lid to her : ' Mrs. -^ , I have formed a high opinion of
[>ur Christian character, and now, as we are alone, I have
mind to ask you to give me, in brief, your idea of what
institutes a true religious experience.' The lady replied
\. some length, stating that, jn her judgment, it oonmsted
r a conviction of one's own sinfulness and weakness, and
ersonal need of the Savior for strength and support ; that
iews of mere doctrine might and would difler, but when
ne was really brought to feel his need of Divine help,
nd to seek the aid of the Holy Spirit for strength and
uidance, it was satisfactory evidence of his having been
orn again. This was the eubstanoe of her reply. When
\e had concluded, Mr. Lincoln was very thoughtful for a
iw moments. He at length said, very earnestly : ' If what
ou have told me is really a correct view of this great snb-
«t, I think I can say with sincerity, that I hope I am a
'hristian. I had lived,* he oontinu^, 'until my boy
k'^illie died, without realising fully these things. That
low overwhelmed me. It showed me my weakneaa as I
ad never felt it before, and if I can take what you have
:b,GOO'^IC
ABRAHAM UNCOLN. 629
stated as a teat, I think I can eafely say that I know some-
tbing of thatohaoge of which you speak; and I will fur-
ther add, that it has been my intention for some time, at
a suitable opportunity, to rnake a public religious pro-
fessioo.' "
The Rev. Mr. Gurley, of the New York Avenue
Presbyteriaa Church, which the President and his
family attended in Washingtou, bore the same tes-
timony as to Mr. Lincoln's purpose "to make a pub-
lic profession" of bis religion.
One, long a helper at the White House, writes in
this enthusiastic way about Mr. Lincoln : —
" He reached forth one of his long arms, and took a
small Bible from a stand near the head of the sofa, opened
the pages of the holy Book, and soon was absorbed in
reading them. A quarter of ao honr passed, and on glanc-
ing at the sofa the &ce of the President seemed more
eheerful. The dejected look was gone, and the counte-
nance was lighted up with new resolution and hope. The
change was so marked that I could not but wonder at it,
and wonder led to the desire to know what book of the
Bible afforded so mnch oomfort to the reader. Making
the search for a missing article an excuse, I walked gently
around the sofa, and looking into the open book, I dis-
covered that Mr. Lincoln was reading that divine com-
forter, Job. He read with Christian eagerness, and the
courage and hope that he derived from the inspired pages
made him a new man. I almost imagined that I could
hear the Lord speaking to him from out the whirlwind
of battle; 'Gird up thy loins now like a man: I will de-
mand of thee, and declare thou unto me.' What a sublime
picture was this ! A ruler of a mighty Nation going to
the pages of the Bible with simple Christian earnestness for
comfort and courage, and finding both in the darkest hours
ovGoO'^lc
30 LIFE AHD TIMES OF
f a Kation's calamity. Ponder it, O ye scoffers at Qod'a
[oly Word, and then hang yonr heads for very shame I"
The Rev. Mr. Gurley wrote of him : —
" I speak what I know, and testify what I have often
eard him say, when I afQrm the guidance and the mercy
r God were the props on which he humbly and babitu-
lly leaned ; and that his abiding confidence iu God and
1 the final triumph of truth and righteousness through
im and for his sake, was his noblest virtue, his grandest
rinciple, the secret alike of his strength, his patience, and
is success."
Between Mr. Lincoln and Bishop Simpson of the
[ethodist Church, there appears to have sprung up
kind of mutual attacbmeDt in the last years of
Ir. Lincoln's life. Of him the Bishop said : —
" The constant recognition of God in his public doca-
lentB shows how completely his mind was under the do-
linion of religious faith. This is never a commonplace
irmatiem nor a misplaced cant. To satisfy ourselves of
[r. Lincoln's Christian character, we have no need to
sort to apocryphal stories that illustrate the assurance
r his victories quite as much as the simplicity of his faith ;
e have but to follow internal evidences, as the work-
igs of his soul reveal themselves through his own puh-
jhed utteraotses. ....
" As a ruler, I doubt if any President has ever showed
Lch trust in God, or in public documents so frequently
ferred to Divine aid. Often did he remark to friends
id delegations that his hope for our snooess rested in bis
iDviotion that God would bless our efforts, because we
ere trying to do right. To the address of a lai^ relig-
us body,' he replied : ' Thanks be unto God, who in our
itional trials giveth as the Churches!' To a minister
bo said ' he hoped the Lord was on our side,' he replied
ovGoO'^lc
ABBAHA.H LINCOLN. 631
'thftt'it gave him no conoem whether the Ziord was on
our aide or not,' for he added, ' I know the Lord ia always
on the side of right ; ' and with deep feeling added, ' but
God 18 my witneas that it is my constant anxiety and
prayer that both myself and this Nation should be on
the Lord's side.*"
Now, what more need be said? Is the case not
clear? Ia the case not made? Do not Mr. Lin-
coln's own words, during hia Presidency, prove the
change which had taken place in his religious char-
acter? Does not the evidence of his Christian friends
finally leave him among them? Mr. Lincoln tells
himself how and when he began to place himself
on the Christian side. In his new sphere in such a
time, he left his former associations behind him, and
the new influences bearing upon him from all sides
he felt warmly and kindly. The hands of the Chris-
tian friends of the Republic and of freedom were
everywhere stretched out to hold him upj their
prayers and their earnest friendship ; their patriotism
gained his good-will and drew him to them. His
son's death, and the carnage of war, and, perhaps,
the threats upon his own life, and the prayers of
Christians for his preservation he conld not with-
stand. And so, not against his wilt, as the dreadful
Wfir progressed, his sympathies and preferences were
developed, and he entered the current whose course
he believed to be shaped by Him who does all
things best. From this position he never had an
opportunity to swerve, even if he had had the in-
clination.
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132 LIFE AlTD TIMES OF
With th« origin and principles of ChriBUanity be
low had no quarrel. He said : —
" I tiave never united myself to any Chnrcb, because
have foaod difficulty in giving my assent, without men-
il reservation, to the long, complicated statemente of
Christian doctrine which cheracteriee their 'Articles of
telief and 'Confessiooa of Faith.' When any Church
rill inecribe over its altar, as its sole qualification for
lembership, the Savior's condensed statemeut of the suh-
iance of both Law and Gospel, 'Thou ehalt love the
<ord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul,
ad with all thy mind, and thy neighbor as thyself,' that
hurch will I join with all my heart and all my soul."
What manner of man could boldly uphold thiii
rand principle of Christianity ? From what other
>urce could he have derived the immortal saying
ith which he entered upon the cloning scenes of hk
fe, " With malice toward none^ with charity for all?"
ov 000(^10
ABRAHAM LINCOLN.
CHAPTER XXVIII.
ANOTHER PICTURE— MR. LINCOLN'S COURTSHIPS-MARY
TODD— THE PUGNACIOUS JAMES SHIELDS.
ALTHOUGH Lincolo was always reaeoniibly fond
of the society of girls and women, it does cot
appear that they were objects of especial thought to
him, or that he had any sleepless nights on account
of them, until long after he became one of the noted
men of New Salem. He seemed to regard himself
more in the light of a teiicher and fiin-maker for the
young women with whom he associated in Spencer
County, Indiana. Most women liked Lincoln, as a
boy, and he was really fond of making himself use-'
ful to them, and relieving them of many a disagree-
able burden. But, according to some veracious
writers, he found his main delight, in this association,
in the privilege he took to " tease the girls." The
purport of this expression may be readily inferred
from the general representation of his character at
this period, as seen in this history. Much of his
doggerel poetry had women for its theme, and the
privilege he assumed and the latitude of his positions
were indicative of the social vulgarity in which he
was reared.
The facts in the following account of Mr. Lin-
coln's first *' love affair " are borrowed from Lamon's
" Life of Abraham Lincoln."
:b,GoO'^lc
LIFE AND TIMES OF
Ldd Rntledge was the daughter of James Rat-
e, a native of South Carolina, and one of the first,
erhaps the first, of the early emigrants to the
try about New Salem. Ann wiis courted by two
he neighbors, partners in business, and finally
e Johu McNeil, or John McNamar, the latter
i; his true name. But McNtimar, after fiudiug
lelf in good circunutauces with a good home,
twhat mysteriously left on a long journey to the
V At first be wrote to Ann, but finally stopped,
nothing more was heard of him. He had re-
id to her his tme name, and his object in using
her, and told her that he would return, and this
id, but too late to see her. Her faith in his
liseswas never seriously shaken, but the mystery
uncertainty involved in his absence and silence
ined her sense of obligation to her own promises,
le meantime Lincoln was much in her company,
er father's house and at the homes of one or
I of the neighbors. He had "fallen desperately
ve with her," and she learned after a time to
him in turn. Finally she consented to marry
and only waited for him to finish his law stud-
ind for something to occur to relieve her from
pledge to McNamar. Her friends and relatives
i in favor of her immediate, marriage to Lincoln,
her own inclinations and judgment began to dis-
her to take their advice. But an event soon
rred which put nn end to Mr. Lincoln's hopes, as
as also on the verge of destroying his reason
Ufe.
ovGoO'^lc
ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 636
Li the Sammer of 1835 poor Ann showed signs
of declining health, and late in August she died. It
was said that her disease was "brain-fever," and no
donbt this was true enough as far as it went, but
many of the curious, sympathizing friends said she
died of a "broken heart."
In the lust moments she called Lincoln to her bed-
side. What passed between them may readily be
imagined, but it has never been told. Her death ua-
manned him, and when her body was placed in the
grave at Concord, his reason fled, and his friends
thought he was lost. But after watching him with
care at the home of Bowlin Greene, one of his ad-
miring friends, for a few weeks, they again allowed
him to resume his surveyor's compass and law-books.
Ann was a good and beautiful woman, and the
most refined that Lincoln had ever met at that
period. The following is his own description of her
in answer to the question of a friend many years
afterwards as to his running wild over the death of
Ann Rutledge: —
" I did really. I ran off the track. It was my first.
I loved the woman dearly. She was a handsome girl;
would have made a good> loving wife; was natural and
quite intellectual, though not highly educated. I did hon-
estly and truly love the girl, and think often, often of
her now."
The whole story of Ann Rutledge, so minutely
told by 'Wm. H. Hemdon and Mr. Lamon, is no bet-
ter authenticated than this laognnge of Mr. Lincoln's.
And I must stake this language- against Mr. Hern-
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UFE AND TIMES OF
epeated statement that Mr. Lincoln's heart
1 with the body of Ann Rutledge, and that
)ved another woman. Is not Mr. Lincohi's
sabstantially that of thousands of other
e same subject ? Does it not show that it
'stf and that he had long ago learned to
it as others had looked upon their ^tt t
X case from the same authorities will now
vhioh must also subserve the purpose of
ig their views of the influence of Ann Rutp
Mr. Lincoln's heart, and of his very mod-
tion for Mary Todd, his wife. Only the
fall an;er tiie death of poor Ann Rutledge,
>wens, of Kentucky, came to visit or live
ister, Mrs. Bennett Able (Abel), near New
.ble and his wife were numbered among
fvarm friends. They had known all iibout
with Miss Rutledge, and instead of being
with his unmanly folly and weakness after
, they seemed to sympathize with and
still higher.
3 Miss Owens had made a short visit to
id then Lincoln saw her for the first time. .
went to Kentucky in the Summer of 1836,
I starting she and Lincoln had a conversa-
Mary, and Lincoln said that if she would
y back with her he would marry her. Mrs.
really in favor of this scheme, and when
ed, Mary was with her. Lincoln was vain
think at once that Mary had not been
in Kentucky, and had actmilly come out
ovGoO'^lc
ABRAHAM UNCOLN.
to many htm. He, however, set ahout the wo
courtship immediately, and from the outset I<
upon Mary aa his wife, although he was m
enough Dot to tetl her so. She may have been
iiig in some of the fine, gentle traits which char
ized Ann Rutledge, but she had a better educ
was very beautifttl, had a fine head, and a me
cent and attractive body weighing a hundred and
pounds. In mental culture and everything els
was more than a match for Mr. Lincoln, and thi
was perhaps, able to recognize at once. Still
probable that she really had some desire to i
Lincoln at that time, and subsequently had
reason to regret that she did not. But as it
mattere did not go smoothly with them. Sh
too sure of her bold on Lincoln, and he la
under the same error as to her. So, as might
been expected, they quarreled, and in 1838 sh
Illinois, and they never met again. The only
munication she ever had from Lincoln after h<
torn to Kentucky was to the effect that he
sidered her a great fool for not staying out Wes
marrying him. As the world, to a great ei
looks upon these matters, however erroneous
blind its judgment, Lincoln's banter would rece
very general vote of approval. In 1866, Miss 0'
then married, wrote several letters to Wm. H. 1
don about Mr. Lincoln's affair with her. 0
them reads as follows ;
"Deab Sib, — Beally you catechise me in true 1:
style ; but I feel you will have the goodness to excD
ov Google
638 UF£ AHD TIlfES OF
if I decline aDsweriog all yonr qnestions in detail, being
well osBured that few women would have ceded as mooh
as I have aoder all the circumstaaces.
" You saj joa have beard why our acquaintance ter-
minated as it did, I, too, have heard the same bit of
gOBfiip; bat I never used the remark which Madam Rumor
Bays I did to Mr. Linooln. I think I did on one occasion
say to my sister, who was very anxious for as to be mar-
ried, that I thoaght Mr. Lincoln deficient in those little
links which make np the chain of woman's happiness; at
least it was so in my case. Not that I believed it pro-
ceeded from a lack of goodness of heart; but bis trainiag
had been different from mine, henoe there "was not that
oongeoiality whioh would otherwise have existed.
"From his own showing, you perceive that his heart
and band were at my dispoeal; and I suppose that my
feelings were not sufficiently enlisted to have the matter
consummated. About the beginning of the year 1838 I
left Illinois, at which time our acquaintance and corre-
spondenoe ceased witboot ever again being renewed.
" My father, who resided in Greene County, Kentucky,
was a gentleman of considerable means, and I am per-
suaded that few persons placed a higher estimate on edu-
cation than be did. Respectfully yours,
"Mahy S ."
The sftying of "Madam Rumor," about which
Miss Owens here speaks, and which she denies, was
to the effect that she had said to Lincoln, "You
would not make a good hasband, Abe." With a little
excusable vanity Mtss Owens says that from LIdcoId's
own showing it can be seen by any one that he was
wholly at her disposal. She refers to his many
letters to her. When she was in Illinois, Lincoln
was a member of the Legislature, and from the Stat«
ov Google
ABRAHAM UNCOLN. . 639
Capital he wrote quite often to her, as he coDtiaaed
to do after he had located at Springfield in the prac-
tice of his profession.
The two following letters from this correspond-
ence indicate clearly enough what Miss Owens could
not have escaped in her own refleotions on the
subject, that they were written by a man not in love
with her, and while he was holding to his honor, was
trying to pave the way out of a position in which he
felt restless and dissatisfied. Neither the language
nor method of these letters is that of the lover; nor,
indeed, do they quite comport with the character of
an honest man, under the circumstances. Still in
these very letters Mr. Lincoln pleads his honest and
manly intentions, and back of this, perhaps, no man
has a right, or finds a right, to go in the case. These
letters, however, bear the general appearance of hav-
ing been written by one of the most unselfish men
in all the world ; and how far this appearance is true
may be better judged after the reading of another
letter which shall also be given, in part : —
" SpBiNonELD, Maj 7, 18S7.
"Miss Mart S. Qwsmb;—
" Friend Maby, — I have commeDced two letters to
send ;oQ before this, both of which displeased me before
I got half done, and so I tore thetn np. The first I
thought waa not serious enough, and the second wbs on
the other extreme. I shall seod this, turn nut ao it may.
This thing of living in Springfield is rather a dull business,
after alt ; at least it is so to me. I am quite 'as lonesome
here as I ever was anywhere in my life. I have been
spoken to by but one woman dnce I 've been here, and
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LIFE AND TIMES OF
lid not have been b; ber, if sbe conld have avoided it
! never been to cbnrcb yet, and probably shall not be
L. I stay away because I am conscious I should not
w how to behave myself.
'I am often thinking about what we said of your
ing to live at Springfield. I am afraid yon would not
atisfied. There is a great deal of flourbbing about in
iages here, which it would be your doom to see with-
sharing in it. You would have to be poor, without
means of hiding your poverty. Do you believe you
d hear that patiently f Whatever woman may cast her
iritb mine, should any ever do so, it is my intention to
ill in my power to make her happy and contented ; and
e is nothing I can im^ne that would make me more
ippy than to ^il in the effort. I know I should be
h happier with you than the way I am, provided I saw
igns of discontent in you. What you have said to me
have been in the way of jest, or I may have misuo-
tood it If so, then let it be forgotten ; if otherwise,
uch wish you would think seriously before you decide,
my part, I have already decided. What I have said,
11 most positively abide by, provided you wish it. Uy
ion is, that you had better not do it You have not
I accustomed to hardship, and it may be more severe
you now imagine. I know you are capable of think-
correctly on any subject ; and, if you deliberate ma-
\y upon this before you decide, then I am willing to
e your decision.
'You must write me a good, long letter after you get
Yon have nothing else to do ; and, though it might
seem interesting to you after yon have written it, it
Id he a good deal of company to me in this ' busy
'Tell your sister, I do not want to hear any more
t selling out and moving. That gives me the hypo
never I think of it Yours, etc., LrNOOLN."
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ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 641
"SPBiHGnsLD, August 16, 1837.
" FbiEKD Mabt, — YoQ will no doubt think it raiJier
strange that I should write you a letter on the same day
OD which we parted ; and I can only account for it by aup-
posJDg that eeeing you lately makes me think of you more
than usual; while at our late meeting we bad but few ex-
pressions of thoughts. Yon must know that I can not see
yon or think of you with eatire indifference; and yet it
may be that you are mistaken in regard to what my real
feelings toward you are. If I knew you were not, I would
not trouble you with this letter. Perhaps any other man
would know enough without further informaUoa; but I
ooDsider it my peculiar right to plead ignorance, and
your bonnden duty to allow the plea. I want, in all cases,
to do right; and most particularly bo, ip all cases with
women. I want, at thiH particular time, more than any-
thing else, to do right with you; and if I knew it would be
doing right, as I rather suspect it would, to let yon alone,
I would do it. And for the purpose of making the matter
as plain as pos^ble, I now say that you can now drop the
subject, dismiss your thoughts (if yon ever had any) from
me forever, and leave thia letter unanswered, without catl-
ing Ibrth one'acousing murmur from me. And I will even
go further, and say that if it will add anything to your
comfort or peace of mind to do so, it is my ^ncere wish
that you should. Do not understand by this that I wi^
to cut your acquaintance. I mean no such thing. What
I do wish is, that our further acquaintance ^all depend
upon yourself. If such further acquaintance would con-
stitute nothing to your happiness, I am sure it would not
to mine. If yon feel yourself in any degree bound to me,
~ I am now willing to release you, provided you wish it;
while on the other hand, I am willing, and even anxious,
to bind yon ftstor, if I can be convinced that it will, in
any con«derable degree, add to your happiness. This,
indeed, is the whole question with me. Nothing would
4I-Q
:b,GOO'^IC
642 LIFE AND TIMES OF
make me more miaerable than to believe 70a miserable ;
nothing more happy than to know you were so.
" Id what I have now eaid, I think I can not be mis-
anderstood ; and to make myself understood is the only
object of this letter.
" If it suits you better not to answer this, ftrewell. A
long life and a merry one attend you. But if yoa con-
clnde to write back, speak as plainly ss I do. There can
be neither harm nor danger in saying to me anything yoa
think, just in the manner you think it. My respects to
your sister. Your fi-iend, ' Likcoln."
While I do not consider myself under obligations
to eater into an analysis of these letters, I shall take
the liberty to use the freedom I claim in treating all
things, men, and subjects of every kind, to say here
that I think them mean, mean without mitigation.
I have said what these letters meant, what they were
desigoed to do. How many men could be found to
put a different construction upon them? They were
not "love-letters;" they were not the letters of a man
who was in lovo. That they were devised for the
purpose I have intimated is plainly enough proven
by Mr. Lincoln's own words in a vulgar and exceed-
ingly unmanly letter written in reference to his affairs
with Miss Owens, in the spring of 1838, to the wife
of 0. H. Browning. He begins this letter by calling
Mrs. Browning "Dear Madam," and closes with the
words, "Your sincere friend, A. Lincoln." Miss
Owens, who was every way his '* equal," vulgarly
speaking, and to whom he bad made a proposition to
become his wife, he addressed as " Friend Mary," and
signed himself "Yours, etc., Lincoln."
ovGoO'^lc
ABRAHAM LINOOLN. 643
With her he had studiously avoided the use, of
the word "dear" even. X say studiously because
he says that he had written aud torn up two letters
before he was satis6ed with what he had written.
Is that the way sincere men write "love-letters?"
From the heart the mouth speaks with ease. In his
Browning letter, which is too unmanly to be bor-
rowed and used here as a whole, after telling Mrs.
Browning all about the way Miss 'Owens was brought
to Ulinois by her sister on a bargain with him to
marry her, and of his astonishmeot ou hearing of her
arrival, and what his reflections were as to her being
entirely too willing, Mr. Lbcoln says: —
"All tbis occurred to me on hearing of her arrival in
the neighborhood; for, be it remembered, I had not yet
seen her, except about three years previously, as above
mentioned. In a few days we had an interview ; and, al-
though I had seen her before, she did not look as my
imagination had pictured her. I knew she was oversize,
but she now appeared a fair match for Falataff. I knew
she was called an ' old maid,' and I felt no doubt of the
truth of at least half of the appellation ; but now, when I
beheld her, I could not for my life avoid thinking of my
mother; fand this not from withered features, for her skin
was too full of fat to permit of its oootracting into wrink-
les, but from her want of teeth, weather-beaten a))pear-
ance in general, and from a kind of notion that ran in my
he^d that nothing could have commenced at the size of
in&Doy and reached her present bulk in leas than thirty-
five or forty years; and, in short, I was not at all pleased
with her."
Then, after telling of how he thought himself
bound to carry out the contract or nnderatanding he
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644 LIFE AND TIMES OF
had with MiBB Owens's sister, whose admirable chaiv
acter and qualities were uDmistakable, he writes . —
"At oDce I determined to consider her my wife ; and,
this done, all my powers of discovery were put to work
ID search of perfections in her which might he fairly eet
off against hftr defects. I tried to imagine her handsome,
which, but for her unfortunate corpulency, was actually
true. Exclusive of this, no woman that I have ever seen
has a finer fiwe. I also tried to convince myself that
the mind was much more to he valued than the person;
and in this she waa not inferior, as I could discover, to
any with whom I had been acquainted.
"Shortly after this, without attempting to come to any
positive nnderstanding with her, I set out for Vandalia,
when and where you first saw me. During my stay there
I had letters from her which did not change my opinion
of either her intellect or intention, but, on the contrary,
confirmed it in both.
"All this while, although I was fixed, 'firm as the
Bnrge-repelling rock,' in my resolution, I found I was
continually repenting the rashness which had led me to
make it. Through life I have been in no bondage, either
real or imaginary, from the thralldom of which I so mnoh
desired to be free."
The opportanity mast not be lost here to say that
there was some apology in 18.^7 for "the want of
teeth " in this country beauty. While it la really
unrefined and indelicate enough for people, men or
women, to appear in the presence of one another
with decayed and offensive looking teeth or without
teeth, in 1882, t)ie same can not be said of that early
date in this countiy.
If the pretty and intelligent Miss Owens was
ov Google
ABBAHAU LINCOLN. 645
toothleBS, she was no worse off than meet of her
neighbors, who had not been naturally more fortu-
nate. The fastidiousness Mr. Lincoln exhibited on
this point was hardly in keeping with some things
in himself, and certainly not with the condition of
the times, or the spirit of tlie lover, who is never a
critic. After his attempts "to procrastinate the
evil day," as he says to Mrs. Browning, and his start-
ling letters. Miss Owens had nothing left her but to
eay no. What woman of sense or spirit could have
done otherwise ? Here was a man who did not even
address her as kindly as he did other women, who
said substantially to her : I H have you, if you desire
it, but I think you better not desire it. I 'II stand
up to what I have appeared to mean, but you'll find
it hard to go along with me. I would like to get rid
of you, but it shall be as you say ; if you are wilting
to let the subject drop, I won't mind it in the least;
the fact is, I have no interest in the matter at all on
my own account, it is simply as you feel and say
ifbout it. See now how transparent this one-sided
matter was by Mr. Lincoln's own account of it in the
letter to Mrs. Browning. He says: —
'" AAer all my sufiering on this deeply ioteresting sub-
ject, here I am, wholly, unexpectedly, completely, out of
the 'scrape;' and now I want to know if you can guess
how I got ont of it, out clear in every sense of the term ;
DO violation of word, honor, or conscience. I do n't be-
lieve you can goess; and so I might as well tell you at
once. As the lawyer says, it was done in the manner
following, to wit: after I had delayed the matter as long
as I thought I could in honor do (which, by the way, bad
ov Google
646 UFE AND TIMES 07
brought me round into the last fall), I concluded I might
as well bring it to a consummation, without further de-
lay ; and so I mustered my resolution and made the pro-
posal to her direct; but, shocking to relate, she answered,
No, At first I supposed she did it through an affectAtion
of modesty, which I thought bat ill became her under the
circumstances of her case; but on my renewal of the
charge, I found she repelled it with greater firmnees tiiao
before. I tried it again and again, but with the same boo-
oess, or rather with the same want of saocees.
" I finally was forced to give it op ; at which I very
anexpeotedly found myself mortified almost beyond en-
durance. I was mortified, it seemed to me, in a hundred
different ways. My vanity was deeply wounded by the
reflection thai I had so long been too stnpid to discover
her intentions, and at the same time never doubting that
I understood them perfectly; and also that she whom I
had taught myaetr to believe nobody else would have, had
actually rejected me with all my fancied greatness. And
to cap the whole, I then, for -the first time, began to sus-
pect that I was really a little in love with her. But let
it all go. I'll try and outlive it. Others have been made
fools of by the girls; but this can never with truth be
said of me. I most emphatically, in this instance, made
a fool of myself. I have now come to ^e conclusion
never again to think of marrying, and for this reason I
can never be satisfied with any one who would be block-
head enough to have me."
From the preceding pnges the reader may, with-
out further light on the subject, be able to make up
his mind as to how incurable Mr. Lincoln's heart
wounds had been, and as to whether the memory of
Ann Rutledge ever could have interfered seriously
with his affection for Mary Todd, or prevented him
ovGoO'^lc
ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 647
from acting as an unincnmbered and honorable man
elionld do towards his owo wife. If his insanity had
been very deep over the irreparable loss of Ann Rut-
ledge, how could he have, so soon after, started into
such a business with Mary S. Owens ? And so soon
after this with Miss Owens, how could he have set
up another affair of the kind with Mary Todd ?
In a book of Kentucky biographies, I find thia
brief sketch of Mrs. Lincoln's father : —
"Robert 8. Todd, banker, was born in 1792. He was
for many years clerk of the Kentucky House of Re[n«-
sentativee ; was elected to the Legislature from Fayette
County, in 1841 ; was re-elected, and in 1846 was elected
to the State Senate, serving four years, and was a candi-
date for re>eleotion at the time of his death ; was Presi-
dent of the Lexington branch of the Bank of Kentucky,
from its establishment to the end of his life.' He was one
of the meet distinguished and useful men of Fayette
County, and died July 16, 1849. Among bis surviving
children ia the widow of President Abraham Lincoln."
In 1SB9 Mary Todd, went to Springfield, Illinois,
to live with her sister, who was the wife of Ninian
W. Edwards, a son of old Oovernor Edwards. She
was at this time about twenty-one years old, had re-
ceived a very good edncatioD, was more than ordina-
rily bright and witty, was high-strung and full of
family pride, was attractive and brilliant in manners,
had a plump and shapely form, with a face which,
while it was not void of beauty, was expressive of
no small degree of spirit and character. No person
could have looked at Mary Todd's face at that time
without seeing that she was a woman of high, and
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8 UFE AND TIMES OF
rbaps at times, QogoTemable temper. This m>-
rtonate trait is plain enough in all her portraits as
rs. Lincoln. Nor does it appear that it ever he-
me the object of her especial care to edacate or
adicate it.
Not long after her arrival at Springfield, Mr. Lin-
In met her, and notwithstanding his recent affair
ith the other Kentucky girl, and "his heart boried
ith Ann Rutledge," he was captivated at once. Her
it, manners, talking powers, and general sprightO-
iBs carried him away. Bat other men were not be-
nd Mr. Lincoln in admiratjoo for Qxla proud and
irited girl. Stephen .A. Douglas was one of her
iters; and it is maintained that little Douglas he-
me 80 earnest in the matter as to propose to her to
icome his wife. But Mary said, No. And for this
ap only two reasons have been assigned. One, that
e detested the moral character of Mr. Douglas, and
e other that she designed marrying a 'man who
3uld some day be President of the United States.
le circumstances of her life do show, too, that her
lart was consulted in this momentous affair. Al-
ough her QDreasonable and bad temper had some-
ing to do with her leaving the home of her father
d step-mother in Kentucky, yet she was not with-
it a peculiar moral strength. Still it must be said
at in this, and her religions training, there is not a
eat deal to touch the admiration or stitrtle the
ndly feelings of enthusiasm.
She had said before leaving Kentucky, perhaps io
e of her fits of fun or bad humor, that she would
ov Google
ASRAHAU LINCOLN. 649
terminate her apparently oljeotless career as the wife
of a President ; and it will be seen that, in political
foresight, she deserved no little coaaideration. While
she never lost sight of this goal, she did not sacrifice
her better feelings or the moral standard to which
she held with some consistency.
Mr. LamoD attributes to her this sentiment: "I
would rather marry a good man, a man of mind, with
hope and br^^bt prospects abend for position, fame,
and power, than to marry all the horses, gold, and
bones in the world." Here are no mean, and cer-
tainly no ordinary aspirations, and the woman who
eoald otter and maintain them is worthy of the
respect of her race.
Lincoln was soon involved in another affair of
honor and love with this vivacions woman, and, in fact,
proposed marriage to her, and was accepted. Her
Illinois friends were all in favor of her marrying Mr.
Lincoln, and there is notiiing to show that she con-
sulted her relatives in Kentuclcy as to her intentions,
ID any way.
So matters progressed nntil a daughter of Oov-
emor Edwnrds appeared on the ground, also designing
to spend some time in the home of her brother. She
was a rare beanty, and as a charmer at once stepped
to the head in the estimation of the men. Her ap-
pearance threw poor Lincoln into a great state of per-
turbation. Indeed he fell in love with her at once, and
began to monm the misfortune or fate which had
thrown htm with Mary Todd. His freqnent visits to
Mr. Edwards's, where both girls stayed, were really
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650 UFE AND TIMES OF
on acooTiQt of bia passion for Matilda Edwards. Bat
his sense of honor never deserted him, and Miss
Todd with " that reoognisanoe and pledge of love
whieh I first gave her," was always before him. 3d
he never breathed a word of his feelings to the beauty
who had taught him to doubt the propriety of his re-
lations to Mary Todd. But his case became more
and more desperate as the moments flew, and when
the time oame, in Janaary, 1841, for him to be mar-
ried to Miss Todd, be failed to appear, and the event
was iDdefinitely postponed.
In the Wiater of 1840, as baa been told, he did
not attend the Legislature. His mind was again un-
hinged, and now more desperately than by reason of
the loss of Ann Rotledge. At this emergency Joshua
F. Speed came to the rescue, and- took bim dowa
to Kentucky, where in due time be was able to rec-
ognize ' Richard as himself again.'
Joshua Fry Speed, this life-long friend of Abra-
ham Lincoln, was for several years a merchant in
Springfield, and for the greater part of that time was
a " room-mate " of Lincoln. In the Winter of 1840
he sold his business out, and returned to Kentucky,
taking Lincoln, who had just reached the last danger-
ous crisis in bis love afiturs, with him. An attach-
ment sprang up between them which was never
changed or lost. Mr. Lincoln frequently urged Speed
to accept an office under his Administration; but this
he did not see fit to do, although by their friendly
relations, he was influentinl in various ways during
tlte Rebellion, for which be had no sympathy.
ovGoO'^lc
ABRAHAM UNOOLN. 651
In love affairs Speed waa about as unsatisfactory
to himself as Linooln was to himself or anybody
else, and, singularly enough, this man who had nothing
to rest upon, and who could not control and regulate
himself, when he returned to Illinois, undertook to
set Speed right. Speed was working himself into in-
sanity over the thought that he was on the point of
marrying a woman for whom he bad not the right
kind of feelings. They interohanged many remarka-
ble letters aboat these matters, and through Lincoln's
aid Speed was enabled to see his way clearly, was
married, and became a model husband, and as happy
as his anxious friend could desire. And Speed's suc-
cess in this UDtried and serious business of ULarrying,
which they both dreaded so much, gave poor Lincoln
great courage in bracing himself for the step he felt
he ought to take at no distant day.
It is apparent from his letters to Speed that this
man, whowas accustomed to fall into fits of insanity
on account of his own wandering loves, was able to
give wonderfully good advice to others. He was
rapidly profiting himself by these letters to Speed.
They served to start in him a course of reasoning
which a man with a truer and higher Christian code
could have drawn with satisfaction and certainty from
another source. It is evident from these and other
letters to Speed that Mr. Lincoln was slowly drifUng
into the opinion that he had acted the fool. Speed
had been in a condition like his own, and yet his
marriage had already turned out well. Mr. Lincoln
now began to have some strong feelings of doubt as
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UFE AND TIMES OF
irness of his treatment of her whose name
with a long dash. If all men would act as
> did, the social a£furs of the world would
>ed beyond repair. The nppermost thing ia
letters, given to the world by Mr. Lmnoo,
first view to be self-happiness. And the
and nnphilosophical way of reaching this
I is taken as the right way ; that is, of con-
leir own predilections, their own whims and
beir own selfhoods. The highest degree of
I is attained through the happiness of others,
ing others happy. There can be no doubt
It may, on the other hand, be doubted as
er there can be intelligent and refined hap-
nytbing but brute happiness, which is not
n the way of making others happy. The
a happiness is of extremely doubtful use, so
selfishness or merely animal gratification
'e seem to be in it. The end of man is not
iness. Happiness is not the grand object of
e man who works for this end and purpose,
rrong principle foremost, and has no reason
tin of failure at* last. All life is founded on
be useful is the great, the paramount object
A life of perfect, harmonious nsefulaess
il. The instmmentalities and eubjects of
!ire out of self, or, at least, look primarily to
So far as happiness is the result, natural
iBought, unpremeditated, unthought-of result,
, deeds, affections, thoughts, and life which
: welfare of the world, the betterment of
:b,GoO'^lc
ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 653
others^ or the growth and expansion of the beautiful,
the good, and the trae here and hereafter, in self
and oat of self in others, aa the end, it is enduring
and worthy of respect.
Although these letters to Speed have some things
admirable about them,, little else besides the wretched
vein of honor can be found in all Mr. Lincoln's court-
ships which appeal to the better judgment, or can do
ought but detract from the tmer, and better, and
wiser Lincoln of twenty years later.
The more Mr. Lincoln heard and talked of Speed's
successful matrimonial experiments, and thought of
his own very strange conduct^ the more he began to
think of her who was equally interested in the case
with himself. The title of " Honest Abe " was in
jeopardy too, even in his own estimation ; and before
he knew the fortunate result of Speed's trial, he be-
gan to reflect more seriously of repairing the injury
he had done to Mary Todd, as well as to discover
whether he was not bound to her by his affections
and inolinatiouB as much as he was by his honor.
She had suffered by bis conduct, and yet she had
released him from bis obligations, without a change
of feeling on her part.
In Lincoln's affair with Mary Todd he acknowl-
edged to Speed that he had only needed such a guide
as he had i^oved to be to Speed. And Mrs. Edwards
held that Lincoln was mistaken in his supposed
attachment to her husband's sister, that he was really
in love with Mary. Lincoln's superstition, as he
unwisely called it, also came to his assistance. He
ov Google
054 LIFE Ain> TIHES OF
bad been provideatuJly involved in ^md's marriage
and restoration to good eense, and wby ahooM Mary
Todd not be providentially concerned in his future
welfare ? That be bad good reason at a later date
to b^elieve that sbe was, remains to be aeeo. The
Edwardses were now opposed to Mary and her un-
certain lover renewing their former relation, arguing
that they were by education, disposition, etc., nn-
Buited ; but this opposition was not successful, as,
. during the snmmer and fall of 1842, they met secretly^
and soon revived their determination to marry.
Several things of more than ordinary interest occurred
daring this time to render their mutual obligations
and inclinations apparent, and so withont more ado
about it Mr. Lincoln got a license on the 4tb of
November, 1842, and on the same day he and Mary
Todd became no more "twain, but one flesh."
It is probably true that Mr. Lincoln considered
himself a martyr to his honor in marrying Mary.
He would have to do it; that was simply the state
of the case. It was his duty, his duty. That was
the way he viewed Hh case, and he was indiscreet or
unmanly enough to say so. There are so many
martyrs to duty, and it is such a consolation for them
to make it known, and be regarded as honor-and-
duty martyrs. I am inclined to the belief that a
very large per cent of men, wVen it comes to the
final issue, are exercised in their own minds more or
less like Lincoln was, and consider it a condescension
and sacrifice for them to marry the women they
have courted, and who, to a great extent, are so
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ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 666
utterly nnselGsh as to give their lives with consum-
mate delight, and without a regret, to the meo who,
they feel, are the very soul of unwavering love and
honor. I am free to say that the sacrifice ia nine
cases out of ten, so far as moral character, and clean,
decent, and correct habits of life are conoerned, is on
the side of the women. But this theme opens into
various channels and ia quite endless, and is not fur-
ther pertinent to the subject matter here.
Mr. Lincoln, the rising lawyer, and bis wife
went to live at first at the "Globe Tavern" at the
enormous expense of two dollars a week, each,
for board and, lodging; and at last this villainous
matter of courting and going crazy was ended for-
ever. Mary had a great task before her. It was
not only to make her hasband " happy," but also to
make him President. She had married a good man,
or one who would be good ; one with mind, honor,
and bright prospects, and her principles were gratified
as well as her feelings. " But, 0 ! he was ao long,
awkward, and ugly."
Lincoln soon found that he was much better off
than he expected, and discovered that he really loved
his wife, and was "superstitious" and philosophical
enough to settle down calmly to the work of life,
mere world-life, in which they were now both equally
concerned ; although he never was qnite free, perhaps,
of some sad thoughts and moments about his marriage-
martyrdom.
Mary Todd, among her attractive qualities, ex-
hibited unusual power as a satirical and burlesque
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666 LIFE AND TIMES OF
writer. Whatever may be said for or against this
quality, Mrs. Lincoln bad rare ability in that way,
aod could have made her mark ia- the world by using
it. As it was, she did enough to get Lincoln into
the most disreputable affair of his life, leaving ont
of consideration his courtships.
During August and the early part of September,
1842, she wrote several papers which were published
in " The Sangamon Journal " at Springfield. These
papers seemed to have two objects, one to ridicule
James Shields, who was the State Aiiditor, and the
other to have fan. Or, perhaps, more strictly speak-
ing, James Shields being a wondeifully good subject,
was merely taken as the instrument for letting out
the fun. It was believed that Shields was just thin-
skinned and shallow enough to raise a great bluster,
and so furnish new material for the contemplated
sport. The editor of " The Journal," while eeeing
the danger in the mischief, could not resist the temp-
tation to print such cunningly devised political wit
Some of the articles verged oo the vulgar very de-
cidedly; some of them were written with no little
skill in blank verse, or rhyme ; and all of them were
exceedingly well executed. While they did not
attack the private character of Shields, they placed
him in a very ridiculous light, and this was more
than the Irishman could stand. The result was that
he sent General John D. Whiteside, of Black Hawk
War memory, to the editor of "The Joamal' to de-
mand the name of the author of the slanderous papers
from the " Lost Townships," the residence assumed
ov Google
ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 657
by Mary, who eigned herself "Rebecca" or"Cath-
leen." Here is the way she describes the effect upon
her nervous system from being apprised of the des-
perate tarn affairs were likely to take on account of
her caustic pen: —
"LoiT TowNBBiPB, Sep. S, IBffi.
" Deak Mb. Fhimter, — I was a-etandiD ' at the spring
yesterday a-washin ' out bntter, when I seed Jim Snooks
a-ridin' ap towards the house for veiy life like, when, jist
as I was a-wonderin* what on airth was the matter with
him, he stops suddenly, and ses he, 'Aunt Becca, here's
Bomethin' for you,' and with that he hands out your let-
ter. Well, you see, I 8t«ps out towards him, uot thinkin'
that I bad both hands full of butter; and seein' I couldn't
take the letter, yon know, withont greasia' it, I ees, 'Jim,
jist yon open it and read it for me.' Well, Jim opens it, and
reads it; and would you believe it, Mr. Editor, I was so
completely dumfounded and turned into stone, that there I
stood in the sun a-workin ' the butt«r, and it a-runnin ' on '
the ground, while he read the letter, that I never thunk
what I was about till the hall on 't run melted on the
ground, and was lost. Now, sir, it's not for the butter,
nor the price of the butter, but, the Lord have massy on
us, I would n't have sich another fright for a whole firkin
of it. Why, when I found out that it was the man what
Jeff seed down to the fair that had demanded the anthor
of my letters, threatenin' to take personal satisfaction of
the writer, I was so skart that I tho't I should quill-
wheel right where I was."
And from this introductioD " Aunt B-^cca" again
assails Shields aDsparingly and effectively. In the
meantime something had to be done in the business
part of the affair. Lincoln was agniu quietly and
rather secretly visiting Mary, and no doubt from his
42-<j
ovGoO'^lc
668 LIFE AND TIMES OF
coQversatioQB to some extent she had been sharply
appropriating material for the wriUngB from the
" Lost Townships." He was, probably, greatly pleased
and amused with the whole performance, and was
ready to back her in it, if he did not directly aid
her. So in " honor " he felt himself bound to stand
for her, and accordingly his name whb sent to the
irate James as the author of one of the letters, but
only one. To assume the responsibility for one of
them was enough to satisfy the case. Lincoln was
at Tremont at this juncture ; but time was important,
scarred "honor" was crying for "satisfaction," and
BO the brave Irishman set out with his inan, Qeneral
Whiteside^ on a journey to Tremont to have the bus!'
ness settled at once. E. H. Merryman and William
Butler bearing of his movements^ mounted their
horses, and started in hot haste to put Lincoln in
charge of the facts, and see that he had fair play.
They reached Tremont in advance of Shields and his
man. But soon after his arrival on the afternoon of
the 17th of September, Shields sent a letter to Lin-
coln demanding an apology and a " full and absolute
retraction " with the suggestive statement that this
would prevent consequences which he would greatly
regret himself. His note was in such insulting lan-
guage that Lincoln refused to consider his demand
until that was sufficiently modified, and took occasion
to say that he too should regret the "consequences"
to which the pugnacious Irishman alluded. But
Shields was full of wrath, and wanted blood, and so
matters went on. Here are Mr. Lincoln's instnic-
ov Google
ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 659
tioQS for the guidance of his Meads, which I borrow
from Lamon: —
" In case Whiteside shall signify a wish to adjnst this
afiair without further difficulty, let bim know, that, if the
present papers be withdrawn, and a note from Mr. Shields
asking to know if I am the author of the articles of which
he complaine, and asking that X shall make him gentle-
msnly satisfaction if I am the author, and this without
menace or dictation as to what that satisfaction shall be, a
pledge is made that the following answer shall be given: —
"I did write the 'Lost Townships' letter which ap-
peared in 'The Journal' of the 2d inst., hut had no par-
ticipation in any form in any other article alluding to you.
I wrote that wholly for political effect. I had do inten-
tion of injuring your personal or private character or
standing as a man or a gentleman ; and I did not then
think, and do not now think, that that article could produce
or has produced, that effect against you ; and, had I an-
ticipated such an effect, would have forborne to writ« it.
And I will add, that your conduct towards me, so far as I
know, had always been gentlemanly, and that I had no
personal pique against you, and no cause for any.
"If this should be done, I leave it with you to manage
what shall and what shall not be published,
" If nothing like this is done, the prelimioaries of the
fight are to be: —
"1st Weapons. — Cavalry broad-swords of the largest
nze, precisely equal in all respects, and such as now used
by the cavalry company at Jacksonville.
"2d. Position. — A plank ten feet long, and from nine to
twelve inches broad, to be firmly fixed on edge on the
gronnd as the line between us, which neither is to pass
his foot over upon forfeit of his life. Next, a line
drawn on the ground on either (each) side of said
plank and parallel with it, each at the distance of the
ov Google
660 LIFE AND HUES OF
vbole length of the sword and three feet Bddition&l from
the plank, and the pasaing of his own such line by
either party daring the fight ehall be deemed a earrender
of the contest.
*' Sd, Time. — On Thursday evening, at five o'clock, if you
can get it so; but in no case to he at a greater distance of
time than Friday evening at five o'clock.
" Hh. Pfooe.— Within three miles of Alton, on the op-
posite side of the river, the particular spot to be agreed
upon by you.
"Any preliminary details coming within the above
rules, you are at liberty to make at your discretion; but
you are in no case to swerve &om these rules, or to pass
beyond their limits."
At the appointed time, no adjustment appearing
possible, these foes proceeded to Alton, and on the
22d of September, crossed over into Missouri ; White-
side with Shields as second man, and E. H. Merry-
man with Lincoln as his second. But Wm. Butler,
A. T. Bledsoe, John J. Hardin, and other friends were
on hand, determined to e£fect some . kind of settle-
ment. This they finally succeeded in doing by leav-
ing the matter to the arbitration of several of the
friends, they making for Lincoln sabstantially the ex-
planation he bad authorized. Mr. Lincoln was abso-
lutely opposed to dueling, and very well, knew from
the first that there would he no duel in this case.
And here is where the ridiculousness of the whole
thing appears. The gory Shields and his friends
overlooked this entirely. The cavalry broad-swords
were procured, and these were of from thirty-six to
forty inch blades; then, under Mr. Lincoln's require-
ov Google
ABRAHAM UNCOLN. 661
ment, the combatants were not only to stand the
length of the two swords apart, but abo six feet
further, thus aotaally placing them, at least twelve
feet a part. With this arrangement the most they
could have done, would hare been to touch the points
of their swords, if Shields could have measured half
of that distance with his arm and sword. Lincoln
had made H^ese impossible provisions in full view of
this funny side of the case. Even if the distance
between the men had not been so preposterously
great, the poor Irishman would have had no chance
without crossing the board, which would have for-
feited his life, while the long body and arm of
Lincoln might have rendered his own position
disagreeable.
Mr. Lincoln's conduct in this matter was deliberate
and premeditated, and this it was that took from him
the odium of stoopiqg to the savage and unchristian
'* code." With him Mr. Sfaields's case began in fun,
and ended in fun. And now for the application of
this affair to the really important matter he then had
in hand, and which his lUinois biographers think was
his saddest misfortune, a burden under which he was
never quite able to stand erect; that is, his associa-
tion with Mary Todd.
Now, Lincoln valued Miss Todd's ability to write,
and, perhaps, had no little to do in instigating her to
write the letters which led to the difficulty with
Shields. Th.en, it is extremely doubtful whether, he
had any part in writing even the one letter for which
he was willing to hold himself responsible. He
ov Google
662 UFE AHD TtH£S OF
thought his relations viiih Mary made it is his dnty
to stand in her place, to shield her.
When Speed was in abject misery aboat the an-
certainty of his affection for the woman he was
going to marry, and yet was frantic bver the idea of
ber death, Lincoln had argaed that Speed's anxiety
for her recovery and health utterly contradicted the
suspicion that he did not love her. And now, who
will say that his own assumption of responsibility for
Mary Todd's misdoings, and all this fuss about a duel
with General Shields, did not point to his affection
for her, and desire to be responsible for her ? If he
had felt that she was destined to be such a burden
to him, and that marriage with her was so repugnant
to him, was this not an excellent occasion to relieve
himself of all these troubles ? Could he not have
chosen rifles, and put an end to his struggles by giv-
ing Shields an opportunity to kill him? He evi-
dently feared death more than he did marriage. He
had no notion of dying then, nor in any such a way.
He and Miss Todd had the same object in view.
They both believed in his ultimate success and
*' greatness ;" she even more firmly than he. They
were mainly congenial, and especially united on the
great purpose ; and if it can not be shown that she
really made him President, is it, after all, so clear
that he was more useful to her than she was to him ?
The real test of marriage is in this very word, useful.
The highest marriage is doubtless that, in which the
partners atttdn the highest degree of usefulness,
working from kindred and genial motives. And the
ovGoO'^lc
ABRAHAM LINCOLN.
highest possible affection one person can diis
another, is in leading him to be the highest
he possibly can be ; in being useful to hiti
ways thnt will make him the most successful,
intellectual, the most refined, the most virtu
the most beneficial in this life with a view to
ov Google
UFE.AND TIMES OF
CHAPTER XXIX.
MR. LINCOLN AT HOME AND AMONG HIS BOOKS— THE
UNCOLNS IN l HE WHITE HOUSE— THE MISTRESS.
MR. LINCOLN DOW settled down with more
earnestDess than be had ever felt to the work
of life. His letters to friends soon changed in tone.
Not six months after his marriage he wrote to Speed
with great vivacity and good humor as to the uncer-
tainty yet of his having a namesake soon at Spring-
field. In a letter to Speed in 1846 he wrote : —
"We have another boy, ^rn the 10th of March. He
is very much such a child as Bob was at his age, rather of
a longer order. Bob is short and low, and I expect always
will be. He. talks very plainly, almost as plainly as any-
body. He is quite smart enough. I sometimes fear that
he is one of the little rare-ripe sort, that are smarter at
about live than ever after. He has a great deal of that
sort of mischief that is the ofiBpring of much animal
spirits. Since I began this letter, a messenger came to tell
me Bob was lost; but by the time I reached the bouse hia
mother had Jbund htm, and had bim whipped; and by
now, very likely he is run away again. Mary has read
your letter, and wishes to he remembered to Mrs. S. and
you, in which I moat sincerely join."
Mrs. Lincoln did not accompany her husband to
Washington during his service in Congress, but
remained at home in care of her children. But no
ovGoO'^lc
ABRAHAM UKCOLN. 666
other person ia the world watched his course with
SQch deep concerD as she did. Nor was the judg-
ment of any other, not excepting the discerning politi-
cians, 80 reliable as to what his course should be.
When he. had established the reputation of *' Honest
Old Abe" nothing was so important to him as to
keep this reputation. It was a distinction which
appealed to the feelings of the masses; and nobody
liked it better than Mrs. Lincohi, and would have
done so much to aid him in preserving it, both for its
own sake and for the stock of political capital there
was in it. When Mr. Lincoln could have been ap-
pointed Governor of Oregon, in 1852, and sent
beyond the line where Presidents may be born or
live, she interposed her veto, on the best of grounds.
And here her judgment was opposed to that of her
husband and all his other friends. They thought it
was a long stride in the way he wanted to go. She
believed it was the road away from the Presidency,
if not to oblivion. And she was right. When Mr.
Lincoln was officiously announced in 1846 as a can-
didate for tiie Legislature, during his absence from
Springfield, she went to the newspaper office and had
the announcement taken from the paper. She did
not think his reputatloa would gain anything by this
step, and here for the first time her judgment was
better than that of Mr. Lincoln and his wise political
friends. When her husband was at last, or so soon,
nominated for the Presidency, all her four children
had been born, and one of them was " dead." When
Mr. Lincoln himself heard of the nomination his first
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666 UFE AND TIUES OF
desire was to tell it to her. She was equally con-
cerned with him ia it. She had kept his eye and
condact turaed toward this eveot dow consummated,
with what good fortune as to the final result, she
never doubted. When admirers, flatterers, sight-
seerd, office-seekers, and friends began to roll in upon
him, she was found equal to the emergency. She
bad thoagbt and dreamed of its possibility, and was
not unprepared to do her part. And both herself
and her children gained the favorable opinion of
those who viewed them in the light of the family
of the future President. Mrs. Lincoln's bad temper
was, perhaps, her greatest misfortune. And if she
ever tried to improve and regulate it, her success was
hardly noteworthy. Like many another foolish
woman, one of her faults was in standing in the way
of her husband in the correction of wrong steps ia
their children. And here she undertook to do with
her tongue, in the presence of the children, what she
was not likely to accomplish in any other way. She
claimed for herself the prerogative of whipping or
pampering the children as her whim or temper ran;
but she considered Mr. Lincoln's disciplinary proceed-
ings often very inopportune, and met them by tongue-
lashing. Indeed this unfortunate temper made Mrs.
Lincoln, at times, a regular Xanthippe. But Lincoln
soon became master of himself, and his good sense
and good-humor were never known to forsake him.
Amidst her passion-storms do unkind words ever
escaped him. He knew what her wretched temper
meant, and waited for the sunshine which he well
ovGoO'^lc
ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 667
understood woald come from behind the clouds. Al-
though in most respects a domestic woman, Mrs.
Lincoln was not, perhaps, a model hoasekeeper. Id
the ornamenting of home in the thousand little ways
known to woman's skillful hand, she did not take
much interest. The outside of her house, especially
received little of her attention. Still, there was some
apology for ber in the utter indifference of her bus*
band for all these things. He was a good-natured,
kind, home man, and to that extent a domestic man ;
but for the thousand little things that make home
charming to the cultared and refined, he had little
respect, or rather he was so taken ap with other
things that he had little inclioation to care for these.
So, between them, their home at Springfield was not
a very inviting place. It had a garden connected
with it, and this Mr. Lincoln attempted to cultivate
a year or two with his own hands, and then dropped
it forever. The yard was also neglected. Few
plants or trees ornamented it; and no refined and
delicate hands took
"The earth whole for their toy,"
not forgetting that
" The meaDeat flower that blows can give
Thoughts that do often lie too deep for tean."
If flowers or shrubs were planted they were soon
left to themselves to die or live as they could. The
sight of all these things was pleasing and grateful
to both of them, but they had no taste or disposition
to cultivate or care for them. Their lot had a stable
on it, and there Mr. Lincoln kept his horse, and there
ov Google
668 UFE AND TIUE8 OF
for a tim« he sheltered a cow. The cow he milked
himself, sad the horse he fed, carried, and baroesBed.
And all this work he did poorly. Little was welt
done m all these things at the home of Mr. LidcoId.
His affections were some place else. His wife was
also contented or concerned with other matters. The
present and its little things were neglected in watting
for and dreaming of the great ones to come. Here
is one of Mr. Lumon's pictures of Mr. Lincoln in his
Illinois home : —
" Od a winter's moroiDg, this man could be seen wend-
ing his way to the market, with a basket on his arm, aod
a little boj at hie side, whose small feet rattled and pat-
tered over the ice-bound pavement, attempting to make up
'by the number of his short steps for the long strides of
his father. The little fellow jerked at the bony hand
which held his, and prattled and questioned, begged and
grew petulant, in a vain effort to make his father talk to
him. But the latter was probably uaconsctous of the
other's existence, and stalked ou, absorbed in bis own re-
flections. He wore on such occasions an old gray shawl,
rolled into a coil, end wrapped like a rope around his
neck. The rest of his clothes were (was) in keeping. ' He
did not walk cunningly, Indian-like, but cautiously and
firmly.' His tread was even and strong. He was a little
pigeon-toed ; and this, with another peculiarity, made liis
walk very singular. He tet his whole foot flat on the
ground, and in turn lifted it all at once, not resting mo-
mentarily upon the toe as the foot rose, nor upon the
heel as it fell. He never wore bis shoes out at the heel
and the toe more, as most men do, than at the middle of
the sole; yet his gait was not altogether awkward, and
there was manifest physical power in his step. As he
moved along thus ulent, abstracted, his thoughts dimly
ovGoO'^lc
ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 669
reflected in bis sharp face, men torned to look after him
M an object of sympathy, as well as curiosity. * His mel-
ancholy,' in the language of Mr. Heradon, ' dripped from
him as he walked.' If, however, he met a friend in the
street, and was roused by a toud, hearty ' good-morning,
Lincoln !' he would grasp the friend's hand with oue or
both of his own, and, with his usual expression of howdy,
howdy,' would detain him to hear a story ; something re-
minded him of it; it happened in Indiana."
At the time Mr. Lincoln entered upon his office
.as President one of his children, Eddie, was "dead,"
and the three remaining sons were, respectively,
eight, ten, and eighteen years of age. Robert Todd,
the oldest, who, in 1860, had been admitted to Har-
yard University, went home to accompany the family
to Washington, but soon afterwards returned to col-
lege. Id February, 1862, William Wallace died,
after a short illness, leaving only Thomas and Rob-
ert. Thomas was named in honor of his father's
father. He wns a mischievous boy, and not very
fond of books and study. He had his own way, and
to a great extent, controlled his parents, as anybody
would suppose Lincoln's children would do. Like
his father, in his early days, Thomas, or " Tad," as
he was called, seemed, at times, to be quite fractious
in his religious training, nithongh in the main he
was a boy of excellent principles. In his simple
faith an endless hereafter and a beautiful and happy
heaven were not the least bit problematic, and when
his good father died the little fellow readily asso-
ciated him with his brother William in a world where
he would certainly be happier than he was in this.
ov Google
670 LIFE AND TIMES OF
" Tad " oouM never quite compreheDd tbe Tirtne
of hie father's nmnerous proclaiiiatioDS appointiog
days of fastiog and prayer, and would coDceal food
to be eaten on these occasions in secret. Mr.
Stanton, for fun, commissioned him a lieutennnt, and
he soon got a sword and military suit, and in this
Buit had himself photographed. He had a " stop-
page" in his speech, of which he improved as he be-
came older. In 1869 he went to Europe with his
mother, and there made some progress in study, but
in 1871 be returned home, and after a short illness,
died, July l&th of that year. "Tad" was not an
especially bright boy, but as he grew older he im-
proved greatly, and his friends hoped for much
from hira.
On the afternoon of the 4th of March, 1861, the
Lincoln family took possession of tbe White House,
and Mrs. Lincoln and her sisters at once set about
getting used to the place, and preparing for the first
reception which wns held on the 9th. A host of
friends had accompanied Mr. Lincoln and bis family
to tbe Ciipitol, and many of these took up their res-
idence at the White House. Among them was Ward
Hill Lamon, a Springfield lawyer.
Although Mrs. Lincoln was called a" green West-
em woman," she bad no idea of being second in
anything at the White House, which did not come
directly in the line of Mr. Lincoln's duties as Pres-
ident. The reception went off to her taste, and she
was quite successful in making a favorable impres-
sion, which, unfortunately, she did not maintain.
ov Google
ABRAHAM UNCOLN. 671
She bad been many years by Mr. Lincoln's side,
but sbe had kept pac^ wilh him only in one thing,
ambition for distinction. She had received more
than an ordinarily fine edocntion for young women
at that day in Kentucky, but she had not improved
her advantages. As io the case of most young
women, her education stopped when she left school,
and while Mr. Lincoln improved himself and went
upwai-d, she remained where she was, in a great de-
gree. Political matters and the current news of the
day, things which could not cultivate and elevate
mind and character, she knew, to some extent ; but
a systematic course of reading, thinking, feeling, and
acting, which would have made her a companion for
her husband, a guide for her children, and a culti-
vated, refined, useful, and happy woman, she had not
entered upon, and never did do so at nay later pe-
riod. Sbe had shrewdness, had education enough to
speak grammatically, and refinement enough to be
agreeable, even among refined people, when she chose
to be so. She had a person not void of attractive-
ness, dressed with taste mainly, and in genecal con-
ducted herself with the dignity and accuracy, per-
haps, due to the position she occupied.
During her residence at the White House, " so-
cial affairs " in Washington were of the least possible
importance ; but that she gave satisfaction to those
whose frivolous souls "live, move, and have their
being" at the Mationnl Capitol, in the gay "court"
society, does not at all iippear. When Mrs. Lincoln
entered the White House, she was wholly given to
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672 LIFE AND TIMB8 OF
her ambition for tbe glory of plaoe. No religious, or
even moral, principles guided her steps. Her taste
for dress was hardly based npon principles of refine-
ment, bat more on mere animal display. In this she
was not, however, worse than the majority of her
light-minded sex, and, indeed, unfortunately the great
mass of the human race. Her extravagance in dress
became notable, and in time, was a source of slan-
der, if it did not also aid materially in anhlnging
her mind.
Mr. Buchanan's commissioner of buildings was in
charge of the White House, when Mr. Lincoln en-
tered it, and was by him requested to remain nntil
he could find a suitable successor. This not very nec-
essary officiitl had the care of the public property
about the White House, furniture, and so forth, and
was a familiar and ceremonious character in the aflairs
of the President's residence. Mr. Lincoln was anx-
ious to retain this Democrat in his place, but in that
he met the very decided opposition of his wife, who
had herself fixed upon a man for the place. Bat her
choice was not agreeable to Mr. Lincoln, and he re-
fused to make the appointment. At this turn of the
affair Mrs. Lincoln withdrew from the field, and shuf^
ting herself up in her room refused to see the Presi-
dent for several days. At last, however, he i^peareil
at the door, and announced that he was ready to
capitulate. These welcome words opened the way
speedily to his wife's arms. Well she knew they
would come. She had tried the experiment before.
In social follies Mrs. Lincoln was an apt learner,
ovGoO'^lc
ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 673
snd in theee things she did not long remain behind
Washington expectations. She could speak the
French language, and sometimes attempted it n^ith
foreign representatives, much to the regret of Mr.
Seward, who feared her lack of ability. The dispo-
sition of Ward Lamon to make his quarters at the
White House was not according to Mrs. Lincoln's
sen'se of propriety, and this she was not long in let-
ting him know. This fact may or may not have some
relation to his very decided exaggerations of her con-
dnct, and the mere mechanical kind of attachment he
olaimed Mr. Lincoln had for her. That point has
been sufficiently discussed in another part of this
work. It is only necessary to sny here, that those
who were familiar with the daily routine in the Lin-
coln family at the White House were unable to give
any thing but most favorable testimony of the genu-
ine relations of Mr. Lincoln and his wife. Mrs.
Lincoln's subsequent life, and many of her letters
which have become public, only go to prove her fen-
tire devotion to his memory, and controvert all state-
ments touching the want of mutual affection between
Mr. Lincoln and herself.
In the Summer of 1861, Mrs. Lincoln visited
some of the " watering-places," and during the fol-
lowing Winter made social affuiris as attractive, at the
White House, as the times would admit.
Mrs. Lincoln carried her points as to many things
in the general conduct of receptions, dinners, and so
on at the President's, and in none of them was ahe,
perhaps, wiser than in deciding that the President
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674 UFE AND HHES OP
should be her escort, and not that of other women,
OD all pablio occasions. While her judgment was
often very good, and her insight of men and events
at times accurate and valuable, she was extremely
sel&sh, and full of prejudice in the maoDer of more
ignorant and less cultured persons^
Mr. Cbofie she suspected, and wanted Mr. Lincoln
to inquire into his motives. Of Mr. Sewiird'she
said ; " I wish you had nothing to do with that man.
He can not be trusled." Of Andrew Johnson she
said: "He is a demagogue, and if you place him in
power, Mr. Lincoln, mark my words, you will rue it
some day." This she said when Mr. Johnson was
about to be appointed Military Oovemor of Tennes-
see. She never could bear Jofauson, and seemed
always foolish enough to believe that he was some
way concerned in the assassination plot.
She said McClellan was a humbug, because he
talked so much and did so little. She would hiwe put
an enei^etic man in liis place. And when Mr. Lin-
coin would argue that MoCiellan was a soldier aud a
patriot, she would repeat: "I tell you he is a hum-
bug, and you will' have to find some man to lake his
place ; thiit is, if you wish to conquer tbe South."
General Grant she alwnys disliked. She said that
he wiis an obstinate butcher, and thought she would
not like to live in the country if he were President.
After the death of licr son, William Wallace, Mrs.
Lincoln, to a great extent, disappeared from public
notice. She was greatly attached to him, and her
erroneous mind shrank from death with honor.
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ABRAHAM UMOOLN. 675
I^eilher her uondact, nor that of Mr. Lincoln, was
wise or good touching the loss of this interestiog
boy. That philosophy which holds the key to a
beiiutiful hereafter for all children should hitve made
wiser and truer pttrents. There is not wanting evi-
dence, however, that Mr. Lincoln, at least, did not
lose the benefits of this " dispensiition."
After the death of Mr. Lincoln, his widow re-
mained for several weeks at tJie President's mansion,
Mr. Johnson giving her her own rime in whicfa to
vacate the premises. Perhaps she never recovered
from the shock of her husband's murder, iilthough
the htst years of her life were passed in comparative
peace and quietness.
Congress twice made appropriations for her com-
fort ; still for years she seemed to be greatly troubled
about her poverty, and in 1867 created what was, per-
haps, ft scandiil, or at any nite was so termed, in her
attempts to sell the clothes she had accumulated in
such extravagance at the White House.
Mrs. Lincoln died in Springfield, July 16, 1882.
The following obituary notice is taken from "The
Cincinnati Commercial :" —
" Hie public has known for some time that Mrs. Lincoln was
in ill-health, but nothing had appeared to iDdicate that her death
at an early dale wae probable. About the 24th of March, last,
she returned from Nen Yurk, vbere ahe had been underfroing
treatment, and her health was then noticeably improved. Noth-
ing, however, could fully arouse her from the gloomy state of
mind, which has almost perpetually borne upon her since that
terrible night when her husband, the foremost man of the world,
was shot by her nde in Ford's Ibeater, Washington. Though
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676 LIFE AND TIMES OP
bei friends had hopes of manf happy dB^B for her, she wu not
able to emnncipate herself from the elisdow that had clouded
her life. After her return, as stated, she took a room at the
house of ber brother-in-law, the Hon. E. W. Edwards, and bad
since been little seen except by near friends of the family. In-
stead of gaining ia health she rather declined, and latterly spent
much of her time in bed. Within the past few dajs she had
been suffering from an attack of boils, wliich caused her great
pain, and doubtless increased her nervotisness.
"On Friday last, she was up, and walked across the room.
Again, on Saturday, she walked across the room with a little
aseistance ; but she grew worse later in the day, and about nine
o'clock in the evening experienced a paralysis which seemed to
iDTolve her whole system, su that she was unable to articulate,
to take food, or to move any portion of ber body. She suon
after passed into a comatose state, and so continued breathing
sterloruusly up till 8.16 P. M. to-night, when she died in the
same house, where nearly forty years ago she and Abraham
Lincoln were married."
"Mary Lincnia was the daughter of the Hod. R. 8. Todd,
of Lexington, Kentucky, and was bom in December, 1818.
She visited Bprini.' field at different times, aud in 1839 came
here to remain. On November 2, 1842, she was married to
Abraham Lincoln, as befure stated, at the house of Hun.
K. W. Edwards. The newly married pair made their home
for some time at Mr. Eilwards's, and afterwards boarded at
what was then the Old Globe Hotel, where Robert Lincoln,
their first child, was born in 1843. The three other children*
of that marriage, Eddie, Willie, and Thomas (so well known as
Tad), are all dead.
"Mrs. Lincoln had three usters, Elizabeth P., wife of the
Hon. N. W. Eilwards; Frances J., relict of Dr. William 8.
Wallace; and Annie, wife of C M. Smith, a leading merchant
of this city, all of whom are now living, Mrs. Wallace is the
only sister older than Mrs. Lincoln. There were also several
half-sisters in the family.
" Mrs. Lincoln remained in Washington for some time after
the tragic death of her husband, and afterward came to Chicago,
where she remained several years. She bought property there
ovGoo'^lc
ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 677
and was comfortably situated, but it was evident to her friends
that lier mind wae UDl)alanced by the immeasurable shock it
bad received, and in hopes of obtaining relief for lier, she wa«
taken to a private retreat at Batavia. On leaving there abe
was thought to be improved both in physical and mental con-
dition. Soon thereafter she went to Europe, remaining about
three yeara. Returning to this city, she made her home with
her sister. With the exception of her trip to New York before
mentioned, and a few other brief visits to friends, she has kept
herself secluded during later years, and nothing apparently
could arouse in her any ambition to mingle with people and
diake off, if possible, the thrall of grief. She was a woman of
great physical strength, and this doubtless aided to bring her
throagh the long years intervening since her husband's death.
In her death the family of Abraham Lincoln is reduced to
one only."
On the 19th the "funeral" took place, the follow-
ing account of which is taken from "The Cincinnati
Enquirer :"—
"The altar presented a beautifol appearance, covered as it
was with magnificent floral decorations. The floral offerings
of the citizens of Springfield consisted of four pieces. The
-largest piece was a large cross and anchor surmounted by a
crown. The base was composed of double hollyhocks, tube-
rosefl, and pansies, arranged in the most beautiful and attract-
ive manner. The next beautiful piece was the 'Gates Ajar,'
composed of carnation pinks and tuberoses. A very beautiful
pillow of carnation pinks and tuberoses, with the words, ' From
the Citizens of 8priagSeld,' worked in forget- me-no is ; and last,
but not least, was an open Bible, composed of carnation pinks
and tuberoses, with the name ' Mary Lincoln' inscribed on the
open pages in forget-me-nots. Besides these there were other
floral offerings which were very beautiful.
"As the caaket was carried from the church, the choir sang,
' Best, Spirit, Best.' The cortege then re-formed and proceeded
to the Lincoln monument at Oak lUdge, where a still la^^r
crowd bad congregated. The bearae was driven to the south
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678 LIFE AND TIMES OF
side of the moDametit, while Uie fnends proceeded to the
Dorthern side. The remains were here taken in charge by the
p&Il-bearers, and escorted by the Lincoln Guard of Honor.
They proceeded to the door of the crypt, while the friends ap-
proached from the north. The casket was laid by the aide
of the sarcophagus in which lie the remains of her illiiBtrioas
husband.
" Over the doorway leading to the crypt the name ' Lincoln '
appeared in flowers, and the walls un the interior were cum-
pletelj lined with living green, interspersed with floral enibleras,
while resting against the sarcophaguB was a lyre, and on it a
large cross composed of beautiful blossoms.
"All the State officers, city officers, and Federal Court
officers attended in a body. Hon. Robert T. Lincoln, Secretary
of War, and the only surviving member of the family, was the
chief mourner.
"The national colors ell day long were suspended at half
mast over the State-house, the Federal Court buildiug, and the
court-house.
"On Mrs. Lincoln's fbre-flngcr was her wedding-ring, bear^
ing the inscription, 'A. L. to Mary. Love is Eternal.' The
iuscriptJOD on the silver plate of the casket is ' Mary, wife of
Abraham Lincoln. '"
Robert Todd Lincoln, the ooly remaining child
of President Lincoln, was chosen aa a member of the
Cabinet of President Qarfield, tind was continued in
the same position by his successor. The following,
it is said, is a part of one of Mr. Liacoln's last con-
versations with this fine son: —
"Well, my eon, you have returned safely Irom the front.
The war is now closed, and we soon will live in peace with
the brave mon that have been flgbting against us. I trust
that the era of good feeling has returned with the end of
the war, and that henceforth we shall live in peaos. Now,
listen to me, Robert: you must lay aside your uniform,
and return to college. I wish you to read law fur three
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ABRAHAM LINOOLN. 679
jeum, and at the end of tbat time, I hope that we will be
able to tell whether you will make a lawyer or not"
These words are all characteristic of Mr. Lincoln,
one of the most extraordinary men of any country or
age ; a man who, in a marked degree, stood alone
among the Prestdents, and iodeed, al) his conolry-
bien. While his personal ambition, daring a great
part of his life, was that of the mere politician, his
thoughts, acts, and conduct were mainly those of a
etatesmnn, in the highest sense of that tetm. While
he thought he was the humblest man who had ever
been President, he sincerely believed that he was
an instrument in the hands of God for the work
which was accomplished under him. And who will
say not so?
May Heaven forever bless and his coontrymen
forever cherish the good deeds and the good name
of Abraham Liacoia I
ovGoogFc
LIFE A]<D TIMES OF
CHAPTER XXX.
SOUE SAVINGS OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN.
HOLDING it a sound maxim, that it te better only
sometimes to be right than at all times wrong, so
HOOD as I discover mj opinions to be erroneous, I shall be
ready to renonnce them. (Address to the people of San-
gamon Count}' in 1832 or 1833.)
Kvery man is said to have his peculiar ambition.
Whether it be true or not, I can say, for one, that I have
no other so great as that of being truly esteemed of my
fellow-men, by rendering myself worthy of their esteem.
(Address to the people of Sangamon County, 1832
or 1833.)
The institution of slavery is founded on both injustioe
and bad policy. (Protest against resolutions in IlIinoiB
Legislature favoring slavery, March 3, 1837.)
My way of living leads me to be about the courts of
justice; and there I have sometimes seen a good lawyer,
struggling for his client's neck, in a desperate case, em-
ploy every artifice to work around, befog, and cover op
with many words, some position pressed upon him by the
prosecution, which he dared not admit, and could not
deny. (Speech on the Mexican War, January 12, 1848.)
Any people, anywhere, being inclined, and having the
power, have the right to rise up and shake off the existing
government, and form a new one that suits them better.
This is a most valuable, a most sacred right ; a r^ht,
:b,GOO'^IC
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ABRAHAM UNOOLN. 681
vhich we hope, snci believe, ie to liberate the world.
(Same speeoh.)
It is a quality of revoIutioDs not to go by old linee or
old laws ; but to break op both, and make new ones,
^ame speech.)
As a nation should not, and the Almighty will not,
be evaded, so let him attempt do evasion, do equivoca-
tion. (Same speech.)
The way for a young man to rise is to improve him-
self every way he can, never suspecting that anybody
wishes to hinder him. Allow me to assure you that
suspicion and jealousy never did help any man in any
situation. (Letter to Herndon, July 10, 1848.)
An honest laborer digs coal at about seventy cents a
day, while the President digs abstractions at about seventy
dollars a day. (Internal improvement speech June 20,
1848.)
The true rule in determiniDg to embrace or reject aDy-
thing, is not whether it have any evil in it, but whether
U have more of evil than of good. There are few things
wholly evil or wholly good. (Speech on internal im-
provements, June 20, 1848.)
I insist that if there is anything that it is the duty
of the whole people never to intrust to any hands but
their own, that thing is the preservation and perpetuity
of their own liberties and institutions. And if they shall
think, as I do, that the exte'nsion of slavery endangers
them more than any or all other causes, how recreant to
themselves if they submit the question, and wilh it, the
fate of their country, to a handful of men bent on tem-
porary self-interest. (Speech in answer to Mr. Douglas
at Peoria, October, 1864.)
This declared indifTerence, but as I must think real
seal for the spread of slavery, I can not but hate. I bate
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682 LIFE AMD TIMES OF
it beoause of the monstroas iojustice of sUveiy itoelf ; I
bate it because it depnves our republican example of ita
just influeaoe io tbe world; enables the euemies of free
institutioDB with plausibility to tauut ua as hypocrites;
causes the real friends of freedom to doubt our sincer-
ity ; and especially because it forces so many really good
men amoog ourselves into an open war with the very
fundamental principles of civil liberty, criticising the
Declaration of Independence, and insisting that there is
no right principle ofaotion but self-interest. (Same speech.)
When the white man governs himself, that is self-gov-
ernment; but when he governs himself, and also governs
another man, that is more than self-govemment— that ig
cles|>otism. (Same.)
Slave States are places for poor white people to remove
from, not to remove to; new free States are the places for
poor people to go to and better their condition. For this
uae, the Nation needs these Territories.
Slavery is founded in the selfishness of man's nature;
opposition to it, in hifl love of justice.
In our greedy chase to make profit of the negro, let
ns beware lest we "cancel and tear to pieces" even the
white man's charter of freedom. (Same.)
Some men, mostly Whigs, who condemn tbe repeal of
the Missouri Compromise, nevertheless hesitate to go for
its restoration, lent they be thrown in company with the
AI>olitionist. Will they allow me, as an old Whig, to tell
them, good-humoredly, that I think this is very silly?
Stand with anybody that stands righi. Stand with him
.while he is right, and part with him when he goes wrong.
(Same.)
Little by little, but steadily as man's march to tbe
grave, we have been giving up the old for the new faith.
Near eighty years ago we began by declaring that all men
are created equal ; but now from that beginning we have
ovGoO'^lc
ABRAHAM LINCOLN, 688
run dowD to the otber declaration that for some inen to
enslave others is a " sacred right of self-governnaent."
These principles can not stand together. They are an op-
posite as Grod and Mammon; and whoever holds to one
must despise the other. (Same.)
It is not fair for you to assume that I have no interest
in a thing which has, and continually exercises, the power
of making' me miserable. (Letter, August 24, 1855.)
Friends, I agree with you in providence, but I believe
in the providence of the most men, the largest purse, and
the longest cannon. (Brief address to the Springfield
Abolitionists in 1856.) .
We will speak for freedom and against slavery, as long
as the Constitution of our country guarantees free speech,
until everywhere on this wide land, the sun shall shine
and the rain shall fall and the wind blow upon no man
who goes forth to unrequited ttjil. (Speech in the cam-
paign of 1856.)
I think the authors of that notable iostruroent in-
tended to include all men, but they did not intend to
declare all men equal in all respects. They did not mean
to say all were equal in color, size, intellect, moral de-
velopments, or social capacity. They defined with toler-
able distinctness in what respects they did consider all
men created equal, eqnal with "certain inalienable rights,
among which are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happi-
ness." This they said, and this they meaot. They did
not mean to assert the obvious untruth, that all were then
actually enjoying that equality, nor yet that they were
about to confer it immediately upon them. In &ct, they
had no power to confer such a boon. They meant simply
to declare the right, so that the enforcement of it might
follow OH fast as circumstances should permit. (Speech at
Springfield, III., June 26, 1857.)
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684 LIFE AND TIMES OF
If we oonld first kaow where w« are, and whither we
are tending, we oould then better judge what to do, and
how to do it. (House-divided-againet-itself-speech, July
17, 1858.)
"A house divided against itself can not stand." I
believe this Government can not endure permanently,
half slave and half free. I do not expect the Union to
be dissolved ; I do not expect the house to fall, but do
expect it will cease to be divided. It will become all one
thing, or all the other. Either the opponents of slavery
will arrest the farther spread of it, and place it where the
public mind shall rest in the belief that it is in course of
ultimate e:(tiactioo, or its advocates will push it forward,
till it shall become alike lawful in all the States, old as
well as new, North as well as South. (" Hoase-divided-
against-itself speech.")
So I say, in relation to the principle that all men are
created equal, let it be as nearly reached as we can. If
we can nut give freedom to every creature, let us do
nothing that will impose slavery upon any other creature.
(Speech at Chicago, July 10, 1858.)
I leave you, hoping that the lamp of liberty will bum
in your bosoms until there shall no longer be a doubt that
all men are created free and equal. (Same speech.)
In pointing out that more has been given you, you
can not be justified in taking away the little which has
been given him. All I ask for the negro is, that if you
do not like him, let him alone. If God gave him but
little, that little let bim enjoy. (Speech at Springfield,
July 17, 1858.)
The Democracy of to-day hold the liberty of one man
to be absolutely nothing, when in confiict with another
man's right of property. Republicans, on the contrary,
are both for the man and the dollar, but io case of con-
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ABRAHAM LINCOLN. 68&
fliot, tbe man before the dollar. (Letter to Boston Be-
publicana, April 6, 1859.)
This is a world of compensatioas, and he who woald
be no slave must consent to have no slave. Those who
deny freedom to others deserve it not for themwives; and,
under a just God, can not long retain it. (Same letter.)
All honor to Jefferson — to the man who, in the con-
crete pressure of a struggle for national independence by
a single people, had the coolness, forecast, and capacity
to introduce into a merely revolutionary document an
abstract truth, applicable to all men and all times, and so
to embalm it there, that to-day and in all coming days it
shall be a rebuke and a stumbling-block to the harbingers
of reappeariug tyranny and oppression. (Same letter.)
I have found that it is not entirely safe, when one is
misrepresented under his very nose, to allow this misrep-
resentation to go uncontradicted. (Speech at Columbus,
O., September, 1859.)
There are two ways of establishing a proposition. One
is, by trying to demonstrate it upon reason; and the other
is, to show that great men in former times have thought
BO and so, and thus to pass it by the weight of pure
authority. (Same speech.)
Labor is the great source from which nearly all, if not
all, human comforts and necessities are drawn. (Speech
at Cincinnati, September, 1859).
What the robber demanded of me — my money — was
my own ; and I had a clear right to keep it; but it was
DO more my own than my vote is my own ; and the threat
of death to me to extort my money, and the threat of
destruction to the Union to extort my vote, can scarcely
be distinguished in principle. (Speech at Cooper Insti-
tute, February 27, 1860.)
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686 LIFE AND TIUEB OF
If oar sense of dnty forbide tfais^ thsn let oe Btand by
oar duty, fearlessly aod effectively. Let us be diverted
by none of those sophistical cootrivances wherewith we
are so industriously plied and belabored — contrivances
such as groping for some middle ground between the right
and the wrong, vain aa the search for a man who should
be neither a living man nor a dead man ; such as a policy
of "don't care" on a question about which all true meo
do care; such as Union appeals beseeching true Union men
to yield to disuaionists, reversing the divine rule, and call-
ing, not the sinners, but the righteous to repentance; such
as invocations to Washington, imploring men to unsay
what Washington said, and undo what Washington did.
Neither let us be slandered from our duty by false
accnsations against us, nor frightened from it by menaces
of destruction to the Government, nor of dungeons to our-
selves. Ijet us have faith that right makes might, and iu
that ftith, let us, to the end, dare to do our duty, as we
understand it. (Speech at Cooper Institute.)
I am sure, however, that 1 have not the ability to do
any thing unaided of God. (Short speech at Newark,
New Jersey, February, 1861.)
The intention of the lawgiver is the law. (First In-
aogoral Address.)
I hold that in the contemplation of aniversal law and
of the Constitution, the Union of these States is perpetual.
Perpetuity is implied, if not expressed, in the fundamental
law of all national governments. (First Inaugural
AddresH.)
I therefore consider that, ta view of the Constitntion
and the laws, the Union is unbroken; and, to the extent
of my ability, I shall take oare, as the Conatitution itself
oxpreaaly enjoins upon me, that the laws of the Union
shall be foithfully executed iu all the States. Doing this,
which I deem to be only a simple duty on my part, I
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ABRAHAM UNOOLN. 687
shall perfectly perforin it, so &r as is practicable, unless
ray rightful masters, the American people, shall withhold
the requisition, or in some authoritative manner direct the
oontrary. {First Inaugural Address.)
The central idea of secession is the essence of aDaroby.
(First Inaugural Address.)
A majority held in restraint by Constitutional check
and limitation, and always changing easily with deliberate
changes of popular opinions and sentiments, is the only
true sovereign of a free people. (First Inaugural Address.)
Can aliens make treaties easier than friends can make
laws?
Can treaties be more faithfully enforced between aliens
than laws can among friends? (First Inaugural Address.)
If the Almighty Ruler of nations, with his eternal
trulh and justice, be on your side of the North, or on
your side of the South, that truth and that justice will
surely prevail by the judgment of this great tribunal, the
American people. (First Inaugural Address.)
Intelligence, patriotism, Christianity, and a firm re-
liance on Him who has never yet forsaken this favored
land, are still competent to adjust, in the best way, all our
present difficulties. (First Inaugural Address.)
In your hands, my dissatisfied fellow-countrymen, and
not in mine, is the momentous issue of civil war. The
Government will not assail you.
Yon can have no conflict without being yourselves the
aggressors. You have- no oath registered in Heaven to
destroy the Government; while I shall have the most
solemn one to " preserve, protect, and defend " it.
The mystic cords of memory, stretching from every
battle-field and patriot grave to every living heart and
hearthstone all over this broad land, will yet swell the
chorus of the Union, when again touched, as surely they
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688 UP£ A.ND TIMES OF
will be, by the better angels of oar nature. (First In-
augural Address.)
I hope to deal in all things fiiirly with Judge Douglas,
and with the people of the State, in this contest. And if
I should never be elected to any office, I trust I may go
down with no stain of falsehood upon my reputation, not-
witiistandiDg the hard opinions Jiidtic Douglas chooses to
enlertain of me. (Rejoinder to Douglas at Freeport,
August 27, 1858.)
I would despise myself if I supposed myself ready to '
deal less liberally with an adversary than I was willing to
be treated myself. (Rejoinder to Douglas's speech at
CharlestoD, September IS, 1858.)
It is safe to assert that no government proper ever had
a provision in its organic law for its own termination.
(First Inaugural Address.)
It is as much the duty of Government to render prompt
just against itself, in favor of citizens, as it is to admin-
ister the same between private iudividuals. (First Annud
Message.)
It has been said that one bad general is better than
two good ones ; and the saying is true, if taken to mean no
more than that an army is better directed by a single
mind, though inferior, than by two superior ones at vari-
ance and cross-purposes with each other. . . .
In a storm at sea, no one on board can wish the ship
to sink; and yet, not unfrequently, all go down together,
because too many will direct, and Jio single mind can be
allowed to control. (First Annual Message.)
Nor is there any such thing as a free man being fixed
for life in the condition of a hired laborer. .
Labor is prior to and independent of capital. Capital
is only the fruit of labor, and could never have existed if
labor had not first existed. Labor is the superior of
ovGoO'^lc
ABRAHAM UNCOLN. 689
capital, Bod deserves muoh the higher' ooneideration.
(First Anoual Message.)
The pradeDt, peaailees beginner in the world labors
for wages awhile, saves a surplus with which to buy tools
or land for himself, then labors on his own account
another while, and at length hires another beginner to help
faim. This is the just, and generous, and prosperous sysr
tem, which opens the way to all, gives hope to all, and
consequent energy and progress and improvement of con-
dition to all. (First Annual Message.)
I shall tiy to correct errors when shown to be errors,
and I shall adopt new views so fast as they shall appear
to be true views, (Letter to Mr. Greeley, August
22, 1862.)
Labor is like any other commodity in the market : in-
crease the demand for it, and you increase the price of it.
(Aonnal Message, December 1, 1862.)
Peace does not appear so distant as it did. I hope it
will come soon and come to stay; and eo come as to be
worth the keeping in all future time. It will -then have
been proved that among freemen there can be no success-
ful appeal from the ballot to the bullet, and that they who
take such appeal are sure to lose their case and pay the
cost. And there will be some black men who can remem-
ber that, with silent tongue, and clenched teeth, and steady
eye, and well-poised bayonet, they have helped mankind
on to this great coDsammation, while I fear there will be
some white ones unable to foi^t that with malignant heart
and deceitful speech they have striven to hinder it.
(Letter, August 26, 186S.)
The radicals and conservatives each agree with me
in some things and disagree in others. I could wish both
to agree with me in all things ; (or then they wonld agree
with each other, and would be too strong for any foe from
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890 LIFE AND TIMES OF
any quarter. They, however, choose to do otherwise, and
I do not question their right. I, too, shall do what seems
to be my duty. I hold whoever commands in Missouri
or elsewhere responsible to me, and not to either radicals
or conservatives. It is my duty to hear all ; but, at last,
I must, within my sphere, judge what to do and what to
forbear. (Letter, October 5, 1863, to Missouri feotionists.)
The world has never had a good definition of the
word liberty, and the American people, just now, are much
in want of one. We all declare for liberty; but in using
the same word we do not all mean the same thing. With
some the word liberty may mean for each man to do as
he pleases with himself, and the product of Jiis labor;
while with others the same word may meau for some men
to do as they please with other men, and the product of
other men's labor. Here are two, not only different, but
incompatible things, called by the same name, liberty.
And it follows that each of these things is, by the re-
spective parties, called by two different and incompatible
names — liberty and tyranny.
The shepherd drives the wolf from the sheep's throat,
for which the sheep thanks the shepherd as a liberator,
while the wolf denounces him for the same act, as the de-
stroyer of liberty, especially as the sheep was a black one.
Plainly, the sheep and the wolf are not agreed apou a
definition of the word liberty ; and precisely the eame
difference prevails to-day among us human creatures, even
in the North, and all professing to love liberty. (Address
in Baltimore April 18, 1864.)
Gold is good in its place, but living, brave, patriotic
men are better than gold. (Address at the White House
November 10, 1864.)
Our Government was not established that one man
might do with himself as he pleases, and with another
man too. ... I say that, whereas God Almighty has
ovGoO'^lc
ABRAHAM UNCOLN. 691
given every man one mouth to be fed, and one pair of
baads adapted to fuTDieh food for tbat mouth, if anything
can be proved to be the will of Heaven, it is proved by
this fact, that that mouth ie to be fed by those hands,
without being interfered with by any other man, who has
also hie mouth to feed, and his bands to labor with.
(September, 1859.)
At elections, see that those, and only those, are al-
lowed to vote who are entitled to do so by the laws.
(October, 1863.)
Tbey have concluded that it Is not best to swap
horses while crossing the nver. (June, 1864.)
Was it possible to lose the Nation, and yet preserve
the Constitution ? By general law, life and limb must be
protected ; yet often a limb must be amputated to save
life ; but a life is never wisely ^ven to save a limb.
(April, 1864.)
With malioe toward none, with charity for all, with
firmness in the right, as God gives ua to see the right, let
us strive on to finish the work we are in. (Second In-
augural Address.)
:b,GOO'^IC
J, Google
INDEX.
AoHiNiaTBATnm— takei a step to
satisfj' the people, 13, 14 — its
" DnconBtJtational " acta, 47, 46,
4S, 60— iU difficQltiea at the
outset, 60, 61— poUcy of Mr.
IJncoln's, 61, 62, 66, 67, 69, 71,
72, 97, 146, 148, 161, 164, 171,
174, 178, 180, 188, 196, 203, 216,
281, 311— ita course with Mc-
Clellan, 86, 87, 313, 314, 316,
342, 343, 366, 396, 397— ita conrse
with ttie Navy, 121, 122, 123—
its conrae wiUi habeai eorjuu,
148, 149, 150, 151, 152, 153, 154,
156, 157, 218, 221, 281 — its
gTaodest achievement, 264.
Aiders and Abettore — in Con-
gress, 64, 66, 67, 148, 279, 531—
want the acknowledgment of
the "Confederacy," 148 — their
babtat carpvi troubles, 148, 149,
150— carry the electione. 206,
207— their evil couree, 207, 208,
209, 210, 211, 216, 218, 227, 483,
493, 496, 498, 507, 631 — their
newspapers euppressed, 215,
216, 217— the President argties
with them, 218, 221, 227- their
hopes craabed, 421.
Bines, N. P. — defeated at Win-
cheeter, 328— whips and cap-
tures the rebels at Port Hud-
son, 429.
Battles and engagement*— battle
at Big Bethel, 10— at Black-
bnm'B Ford, 15— first Bnll ttnn,
15, 16, 17, 18, 19-of WilBon'a
Creek, 92, 93 — of I«xington,
Missouri, 98— of Belmont. 105—
of Fort Henry, 109— of Fort
Donelson, 110, 111, 112, 113,
114, 116— of Mill Springs, Camp
Wildcat, 116 — of Ball's Bluff,
117— New Madrid, Island No.
10, 285, 286— Forte Jackson and
Philip, 287 — New Orleans,
288— ehiloh, 292 to 301— Cor-
inth, 303— Perryyille, 305 —
Stone River, 306-r^)t the Iron-
clads, 309, 310— Yorktown,
321 — Winchester, 328 — Fair
Oaks, 333— Front Royal, Port
Republic, 343— Seven Days',
348, 349, 360, 361— Cedar Mount-
ain, 377 ^ Gainesville, Manas-
sas, ChantJlly, 378— Harper's
Ferry, 387 — Antietem, 388-
FrederirkBhnn!, 403. 404 —
Chancellorsville, 408, 409, 410—
GettyBbui^, 416, 417. 418, 419.
420, 421— Vicksbuii?. 428— Port
Hudson, 429 — Cbickomanga,
431, 432 — Chattanooga, 434,
436— Fort Sumter, 438- Alaba-
ma and Kearaarge, 463 — Resaca.
Eenesaw Mountain. Atlanta,
552, 553,554— The Wildemeae.
Spottsytvanfa Court House,
Cold Harbor, 667 — Franklin,
Nashville, 561— Five Forks, 668.'
Beauregard, G. T, — in command
at Manassas, 13— hie course in
the batUe of Bull Run, 26, 84—
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694
hie Shiloh diBpatcb, 296, 300-
ceimiree Halleck, 302 — vir-
tually disappeara from the con-
flict, 3(3, 680.
Blair, F. P. Sea.— his peace pro-
ject, 633, 534~iDakes a second
trip to Richmond, 636, 638.
Br^g, General Braxton— enters
Kentucky, sets up a govern-
ment, 304— retreats, fights at
Ferrrville, 306— at Stone River,
306— at Ghickamauga, 431,
432— bb oppoeflion to General
Johnston, 550.
Breckinridge.JohnC.— hisconree
in the called session of Con-
gress, 62, 66, 67— attempts to
negotiate with Sherman, 560.
Buckner, General 8- B.— collects
an army at Bowling Green,
106 — at Fort Donelson, sni^
rendere, 111, 114, 115.
Buell, Don Carlos— at the bead
of tbe Department of the Ohio,
103— coquets with Halleck,
sets out for Pittsburg Landing,
291, 292. 294, 300— again at
Chattanooga, follows Bragg to
Kentncky, 303, 304— fights the
battle of Peixyville, 306— super-
seded, 306.
Bumaide, General A. K— sails
for Roanoke Island, 125, 126—
in command of the Army of
the Potomac, bis course and
failure, 401 to 406— in East
Tennessee, 433.
Butler, General B, P.— finishes
his work in Baltimore and goes
to Fortress Monroe, 9, 10— suc-
ceeded by General Wool, 10—
his connection with and views
on tbe " contraband " question,
gives a policy tJ) the Adminis-
tration, 67, 68, 09, 71, 72— at
Pamlico Sound, 124, 126— aula
with a small army to the month
of the MissiBsippi, 286, 287—
takes possession of New Or-
leans, 288— at Bermuda Hnn-
dred,55S.
Cabikkt— said t-
men too old, 119 — changes in,
505 — final compraeiUon of Mr.
Lincoln's, its last meeting with
him, 577, 578 — Mr. Lincoln's
treatment of, 686, 587, 588, 589.
Carpenter, F, B.— tells of some
undignified language in the
President's message, 46— gives
an account of tbe Emancipa-
tion Proclamation, 243, 246—
gives some account of Mr,
Lincoln's Isst Cabinet meeting,
577~relateB a story, 589— tells
of Mr. Lincoln's reli^on, 627.
Chase, Salmon P.— bis "green-
back" plan accepted by Con-
gress, 147— his great e&brta and
tbe success of bis fiuancial
plans, 200, 201, 202— the value
of hie work, 203, 204— his hand
in the Emancipation Proclama-
tion, 249 — withdraws from the
Cabinet, 505— becomes Chief
Justice, 506.
" Commercial," The Cincinnati-
gives an obituary notice of Mrs.
Lincoln, 675.
Congress — assembles, July 4, 1861,
its composition and officers,
29— its course, work, and spirit
in this session, 52, 53, 54, 55,
66, 57, 58, 59— meets in De-
cember, 1861, 127— its work in
the winter of I86I, 147, 148,
161, 166, 166, 167 — abolishes
slavery in the District, 166, 167,
168, 169— legislates for the freed
ovGoo'^lc
negroes in the District, 171,
' 172 — paasee a bill forever fot^
bidding slRvery in any-ot the
Territoriee, 172— passee an act
as to the dispoeition ot slaves
eeehing refuge in the armies,
173. 175, 176— rwsee a feeble
cry BgaiDBt the cooree of France
as to Meiico, 196, 19ft— accepts
and puts forward Mr. Chase's
" greenback " financial plan,
201, 202— takes note of the dis-
loyal newspapers, 21S — as-
sembles in December, 18ft2,
256— its acts, 280, 281— admits
West Virginia, 261— assembles
in December, 1863, 466— its acts
at this time, 477, 480, 481, 482-
repeals the Fngitive Slave
Jmw, 481, 482— its acts in the
winter of 1864, 530, 531— its
crowning act, 531, 632— revives
the rank of IJentenant-General
and recommends the appoint-
ment of Grant, 646, 547.
Contiabands — their treatment in
■ Washington, 171— General But-
ler presents their case to the
Administration, 173, 174 — dis-
position made of them in the
armies, 174, 175— turning them
into soldiers, 175, 446.
Convention, Presidential — the
Republican malcontents, at
Cleveland, 499, 600— Republi-
can, at Baltimore in 1864,601,
502— Pemocratic, in Chicago in
1864,604.
Davis, Jhpfkbson— his view of
Harper's Ferry, 11 — on the
field at Bull Run, begins to
qnarrel with his generals, 26—
his trifling talk about " uncon-
stitutional," 47 — calls his legis-
lature, his arguments, his in-
auguration, 73, 74, 75— he ex-
emplifies the one-man power,
79, 80— resorts to conscription,
S3 — hie dissensions with his
generals and others, 26, 84, 302,
325, 526, 560— his views of for-
eign influence, 104 — his view
of association with the North-
em miscreants, i;79— his posi-
tion and power, 325— his course
as to negro soldiers, 446, 570—
his views of peace and the
Union, 494, 495, 5.34, 642- his
stubborn efforts to prolong the
war, 541, 666, 570-viBits Hood,
554.
Democrats— the wicked and er-
roneous course of some of their
leaders, 187, 206, 208, 209, 218,
227, 278, 279, 631, 532 — the
masses of them desett the
leaders for tlie time and go to
the help of the country, 187— a
verdict concerning their party
as such, 209— acU of some of
their disloyal organizations,
212, 221.
Dennison, Governor Wm, — pre-
sides in the Republican con-
vention, 601 — becomes Post-
master-General, 605, 606.
Documents and Messages — Mr.
Lincoln's first message to Con-
gress, 30, 46, 47 — section ot Con-
fiscation Act, 70 — Fremont's
slavery and confiscation proc-
lamation, 96 — Mr. Lincoln's
flret annual message, 127, 146—
his message proposing com-
pensated emancipation, 167' —
Mr. Lincoln's preliminary
Emancipation Proclamation,
239— the Emancipation Proc-
lamation, 246 — Mr. Lincoln's
ov Google
Mcond anniial memge, 2&A—
Mr. Edincoln's genenl war
order, 281 — HcCIellmn'B wod-
derful letter, 336— Mr. IJDcola'e
fetalistory order, 447 — Mr. Lin-
coln'fl third sniiual mcowge,
465 — Mr. Lincoln's amnesty
proclamations, 472, 475 — Mr.
Lincoln's speecb at GettjsbuTp;,
487— Mr. Lincoln's remarkable
speech after his second elec-
tion, 510— Mr. liiicoln'e fourth
annnal message, 513— Hr. Lin-
coln's second inangural address,
542— Mr. Linocdn'a last speech,
572.
B
EiiANciPAnoM — the w<h^ of be-
gan bj the President, 157— fn
the District of Columbia, 166—
in the Territories, 172 — com-
pensated, again presented, 233,
280~of the runaway slaves of
rebels, 287— Mr. Lincoln's pre-
liminary Proclamation issued,
239— his final Proclamation,
246.
England— her band and eympa-
thiea in the Rebellion, 20, 82,
83 — her naval system rejected,
120 — the evil work of her
writers and newspapers, 122,
123, 183 — her avarice over-
shadows her former Abolition
pretensions, 122— two great
victories over her, 123 — her
blockade schemes thwarted,
124, 12S-~her merchant-vessel
boarded by American seamen,
177— claims a ground of war,
17S— her unfriendly and wicked
desires as to this oonntry, 178,
179, 183, 186, 187-acceptB the
explanation in the Trent Case,
180, 181, 183— the motives of
her misistry and people, 186;
1S8, 189, 452— her aid to the
Bebellion, 189, 190, 191, 4S2—
loses her title to "roiabessof
the seas," 190— considers her
chances ftM" territorial extension
in America, 191, 192— witii-
diKWs fran theEon^Man coali-
tion, 194— her saikvs no match
for Americans, humbled in the
last conflict at; sea, 463, 464.
"Enquirer," The Cincinnati-
gives an account of the funeral
of Mis. lincfln, 677.
pABBAaDT, Captain D. Q.—
the Missiwippi, 28tl, 287— at-
tacks Forts Jackson and Philip,
takes New Orleans, jtoes up to
VicksbuiK, 287, 288.
Flbyd, John B. — in West Vii^
ginia, 88, 89, 90— at Fort Dooel-
son. 111, lis.
Foote, Commodore A. H.— takes
Fort Henry. 109— fails at Fort
Donelaon, 112, 113
France — hastens to acknowledge
tiie rebels as belligerents, 186,
192 — her emperor starts a
scheme for establishing her
authority in Mexico, 191, 192,
' 193— her aid to tlie American
Rebellitm, 104, 206— withdraws
her troops from Mexico, 108,
190— <^erB her service as paci-
ficator. 204.
Fremont, Qeneral John C— takes
command in Missouri, 90— his
course, difficulties, chameter,
removal, 91, 94, 95, 96. 97, OS,
99, 100, 101-~in West Virginia,
284— nominated by the mal-
contents, 600— declined to make
the race, his reasons, 601.
ovGoo'^lc
697
Wre down Fort Sumter, 4S6~
enten CbarleitOD, 665.
Onnt, GenenU V. S.— ttkes Pa-
dncah, maicbea agaiDst Bel-
Doont, 104~gelfl into a close
place and cuts hie wajr out,
106— «t Fort Henry, 108, 10ft—
mya h« will take Fort Donel-
Bon on a certain day, 110—
fights the battle of Fort Donel-
BOD, no. 111, 112, 113, 114, ne-
at I^ttsbuTg Landing, 289—
fights the battle of 8hiloh,290,
291, 292, 293, 294, 295, 300, 301—
in Tennessee, 303— his Vicks-
hmg campugo, 424, 426, 428,
427, 428, 429 — his n^w com-
mand, 433 — at Chattacot^a,
434, 435, 436, 437 — becomes
Lieutenant-Gleneral, gets a gold
medal, 477— appointed to the
coDimand of all the armies,
becomes Lieotentnt-General,
646, 547 — his views and coarse,
647, 648, 656— b^ns bis march
to Richmond, 656— encounters
Lee in the Wilderness, at Spott-
sylTsnia Court House, Cold
Harbor, 667— before Kicbmond,
the cost of his bloody cam-
pa^, 568, 659— consents to
Sherman's march to the sea,
662 — his operations before
Richmond, 663, 664— becomes
uneasy about Lee's esc^>e,
667 — takes possession of Rich-
mond, 668 — presses Lee to sur-
render, 668, 569— ordered to
take command of Sherman's
proceedings, anthorizes the
terms of Johnston's surrender,
669— attends President lin-
Goln's last Cabinet meeting, 677.
Oreeley, Horace— print* along,
rude letter to the President,
235— his fonndationleas and
evil peace scheme on the
Canada border, 488, 489, 490,
«1, 492, 493.
H
Haskas Cospus— the President
disposes of habea* eorput in his
first messsge, 37, 46— a theme
with the aympathisers, 148,
149— a test case under the writ
of, 149, 150, 161. 152— the Chief
Justice's course on, 149, ISO-
opinions on, 151, 152— sketch of
its fate during the war, 154,
165, I5S, 157, 158— used to aid
the Rebellion, 210— it was Con-
stitutional, 216.
Haileck, General H. W.— takes
command of the Departnient
of the West, 101— gives Grant
permission to take Fort Henry,
108— bis claims on account of
Fort Donelson, llS—advances
into Tennessee, retires and re-
instates Grant, 289 — plays with
Bnell, 291— takes command at
Shiloh, 300— his fictitious dis-
patch, 301, 302— goes to Wash-
ington, 302— takes command of
all the forces, visits McClellan,
S66~reviews McClellan's case,
367— commands HcClellan to
send troops to Pope and
abandon the Peninsola, 371 —
commands McClellan to move
into Virginia, 390— relieves Mc-
Clellan, 302— his manners and
conduct, 397— arrests Hooker,
413— becomes chief of staff, 548.
Holland, J. G.— telle Mr. Bate-
mon's story of Mr. Uncoln's
religion, 612, 616.
ov Google
Hood, Q«iieral J. B.— bis estimate
of JohnBtoiysarmr, 64&~flaper-
sedes JobnstoD, 652— abacdoDB
Atlanta, 563— his fatal cam-
paign in Tenneaaee, 664, I
6ei.
Hooker, General Josepli — his
censure cyf McClellan, 323 — his
reprehenrible conduct under
Bnmside, 403, 404— takes com-
mand of the Arm^ of the Poto-
mac, 406— hia couree and fail-
ure, 407,408,409, 410, 412, 413—
goes to Tennessee with his
corps, 433 — his performances,
hu battle above the clouds,
436, 436, 437.
Houae, White— taken poeaesaion
of by Mr. lincoln and hts
bmily, 670 — aflbirs in, under
the Lincolns, 670, 671, 672, 673,
676.
Hunter, General David- takes
command in Hisaouri, 99 — hia
emancipation orders, 231^232 —
abandons West Virginia, 658.
jAOKBOti, Gknbeal T. J.— at fint
Bull Run, 84— hia operations
in the Shenandoah Vallej',
328 — cleats the valley, and
whips the Federals, 342, 343,
377.
Johnson, Andrew — nominated
(or the Vice- Presidency, 602—
takes the oath of office as
Vice-President, 542.
Johnston, General Joseph E. —
destroys Harper's Ferry, 11—
joins Beuuregard at Bull Bun,
t6~his views of the first battle
of Bull Run, 22, 24~hi8 views
of Yorktown, 319— his error in
estimating troops, 320 — his
statements, 3S3, 324— his cfaaN
acter and generalship, 326, 560,
661— wonnded, 334 — his cam-
paign from Chattanooga to
Atlanta, 549, 650, 551, 652— his
view of the effect of his soccees
on the Northern election, 550 —
again in command, 565 — sur-
renders to Sherman, 569.
L
Lamom, Wabd Hill — becomes
Marshal of the District of
Columbia, his high hand, 171 —
bis pictnru of Mr. Lincoln in
Springfield, 668.
Lee, Robert E. —goes to West
Virginia, 89 — returns without
honors to Richmond, 90 —
takes command of military
tnattets in Virginia, 325— hia
acts and military career, 348,
349, 351, 352, 3T7, 383, 384, 38,%
387, 388, 389, 402, 403, 404, 408,
409, 410, 411, 412, 415, 416, 418,
419, 421, 422, 656, 667, 664, 666,
668, 569— meets Grant, 656—
forced back to Richmond, finds
more than his match, 559— asks
for terms of surrender, 566 —
his surrender, 668, 569.
Lettere— Mr. lincoln's, to Gen-
eral Fremont, 07 ; to Governor
Seward, 213; to the Copper-
heads, 218, 221; to Horace
Greeley, 235, 489, 492 ; to A. G.
Hodges, 260; to McClellan,
314, 316, 319,-329, 331, 336, 346,
356, 362, 363, 364; to General
Grant, 429— to General Scho-
field,439; to Chas. Drake, 440;
about Dr. McPheeters, 485; to
whom it may concern, 490; to
Mr. Raymond, 494 ; to the Re-
publicans, 603; to Mr. Bi^r,
ovGoo'^lc
636; to General Weltzel, 571—
toMai7 Oweiis,639,64l— to Mrs.
Browning, MS— McCIellan's, to
Secretary of War, 321, 322, 330,
344, 360— Hallepk'B, to McClel-
lan, 367— Jeffereon Davis's, to
Edmund Kirk, 494; to F. B.
Blair, 534— General Grant's, to
Mr. Btanton, 610— Mr. Seward's,
to Mr. Adams, 536— Mr. Stan-
ton's, to General Grant, 567—
Mary S. Owens's to W. H.
Hemdon, 637.
Lincoln, PreeideDt — sends his
firet message to Congress, 30—
its character, 45, 46, 47 — his
eourse in the Presidential of-
fice, 46, 47, 48, 49, 61, 97, 101,
119, 120, 121, 122, 127, 147, 149,
154, 155, 166, 157, 160, 162, 166,
166, 168, 171, 172, 176, !78, 183,
186, 188, 197, 198, 203, 210, 212,
216, 217, 221, 227, 234, 236, 237,
239, 243, 246, 312, 314, 329, 367,
381, 382, 397, 430, 433, 439, 440,
456, 472, 475, 480, 481, 482, 484,
486, 493, 607, 513, 533, 534, 535,
636, 564, 571 , 572, 577, 686, 687—
his vonderful course and pa-
tience with McCIellan, 86, 313,
316, 316, 329, 331, 335, 342, 343,
356, 362, 367, 368, 373, 379, 380,
397, 398-his first annual mes-
sage, 1S7, 146— his character,
147, 162, 165, 218, 230, 258, 239,'
249, 250, 314, 329, 307. 398, 399,
414, 430, 481, 483, 484, 487, 493,
509, 510, 535. 647, 554, 671, 678,
579, 585, 686, 687, 688. 589, 591,
693, 594, 596, 696, 597, 608, S99,
600, 601, 602, 603, 006, 607, 631,
636, 637, 642, 64.5. 653, 656, 658,
660, 666, 667, 668, 673, 679—
assails a Southern doctrine in
ge, 147— his
to Congress proposing com-
pensated emancipation, 167 —
treatment of his vievs, 160,
161, 162, 165~his course with
slavery, 157, 161, 162, 166, 170,
229, 230, 231, 232, 234, 235, 237,
238, 239, 243, 246, 248, 249, 260,
263, 254— writes a cutting let-
ter to Governor Seymour, 213—
engages in diacnssing his course
with the aiders and abbettors,
218, 221, 227— his policy and
Ciuduct indorsed at tlie polls,
228 — again presents his plan of
compensated emancipation, 233,
234 — ^ advises the treedmen to
seek homes in another country,
234— writes his famous letter to
Horace Greeley, 236— his re-
ligion, 238, 239, 430, 644, 564,
565, 596, 603, 609 to 632— writ«B
and issues his preliminary
Emancipation ProclamatioD,
239, 243— ieeoes the Emancipa-
tion Proclamation, 246— rigns
many copies of tliis Proclama-
tion, 249 — his act, describes his
motives tor it, 249, 250, 253—
how it was ^■iewed, 253, 254—
his greatest acts, 157, 233, 237,
239, 243, 246— sends to Congress
his BeconH annual message, 256,
280— issues a general war order,
282— begins to lose confidence
in McCIellan. 282, 283— writes
letlere to McCIellan, touches
the weak point, 316. 316— calls
for more troops, 381— sends to
Congress his third annual mes-
sage, 455- issues his amnesty
proclamatjnn in December,
1863, 472 — his reconstmctJon
plan, 472, 475, 479, 481— makes
a speech at Gettysburg, 487,
4SS — his course with Mr.
ov Google
700
Oreelej and hia psendo peace
agenta in Canada, 488 to 4H-
renominated (or the Fnai-
dency, 602— writes his letter
of acceptance, G03— calls for
more aoldiera, E06 — makes
speeches, 507— re-elected, his
view of this snccess, 609— makes
a remarkable speech, 610— his
second inaugnmtion and hfs
address, 542, 544 — appoints
(iTMit to the command of all
the armies, 647 — Issues s
thanksgiving proclamatii
564 — publicly thanks General
Sherman, 666— meets his great
captains at City Point, 55tl —
directs General Grant not to
touch political qnestions, 667-
enters Richmond, exhibits his
lenient disposition, 671 —
last speech, foreshadows his
reconstruction policy, 672— is-
sues a proclamation opening
the ports and stopping draft-
ing, calls his last Cabinet meet-
ing, 677 — tells of his dream,
the condition of liis mind on
the 14th of April, 18»e, 677,
578— attends the theater, 679,
680 — his assassination, 681 —
his fnneral, 582, 583— hia attach-
ment to his Cabinet, hisdemon-
stiation towards Mr. Stanton,
6SS, 68»— Mr. Bancroft's opin-
ion of him, 689 — Mr. Emerson's
opinion of bim, 601 — Hr. Le-
lond's opiuton of him, 593—
was he great and good 7 594—
his story-telling, 594, 696— his
ambition, its modes, its founda-
tion, bis selfishness, bis nn-
selflshness, 696, 697, 698, 609,
604— bis vision of two faces of
himself, 601— its interpretation.
602 — hia dreams of himself,
607, 606 — opinions on his re-
ligion, 611, 612, 630— his court-
ships and marriage, bis home-
life, 682 to 669, 672, 673— be-
comes involved in an " aflUr
of honor," his wonderfnl device
to avoid a duel, 666, 658, 669,
660, 061— described by Mr. La-
mon, 668 — hia course in the
White Honse, 670.671,672, 673,
674 — his conversation with bis
son, 678— his exalted name,
679.
Lincoln, Mary— her parentage,
visits Sprin^eld, 647— asked
by Mr. Douglas to beconie hia
wife, designed marrying a Pres-
ident, 648 — her lofty senti-
ment, 649 — Mr. Lincoln de-
dines to iq^peorat the appoint-
ed time for their marriage, 650,
663— -renew their engagement,
marries Mr. Lincoln, 654 — her
qualities, character, and life,
6)6, 656, 662, 665, 666, 667, 670,
671, 672, 673, 674, 675 — writes
for the newspaper and gets
Mr. Lincoln into an afiur of
faonor, 666, 667, 658— her judg-
ment, 666 — her children, 664,
669— her course in the White
House, 670, 671, 672, 673— her
views of leading men, 674— her
lotter years, 674. 675, 677— her
death, 675, 676, 677.
"Lost Cause " — inongurated in
form, 73, 74, 75, 76— its despoUc
hand. 76, 77, 7S, 81, 325 — its
financial weakness, 81, 82— its
attempts to get foreign aid,
82 — its misfortunes in West
Vir^nia, 89— its afioirs on the
Mississippi and in Kentucky,
104, 106, 106, 107, 113, 114, 116,
ovGoo'^lc
701
116— ita IfmitB tunowed, S
its naval prospects come t
end, SIO — want ol faarmonj'
among ita leaders, 827 — its rain
hope^381— its power broken
on the MissiSuppi, 428 — the
strong man fixes bis death
gnsp upon, 563— its final col-
lapse, 669.
Lyon, General Nathaniel — his
difficulties, 91, 92—fights the
battle of Wilson's Cieek, his
death, his Talne, and character,
92, m.
M
liAxiHiuAN— Napolecu prepares
a throne for him, 192— be seeks
the aid of the Pope, 193 —
left to his fate in Mexico,
198, 199.
Ueade, General George G.— takes
command of the Army ol the
Potomac, 413— his oncertain
coarse, 416,416, 417, 418— flghte
the battle of Gettysburg, 418,
419, 422.
UcDovell, General Irwin —
moves to the aid of Patterson,
proposes an attack on the
rebela at Manassas, 13 — his
view adopted, his army moves
toward Bull Rnn, 14— bis coarse
in the battie, 16, 16, 17, 16, 22—
not deemed satisfactory, 84—
bis operations in Virginia,
ordered to re-onforce McGlel-
lan, 342 — startles McQellan,
S44.
McClellan, General George B.—
appears as a champion of slav-
ery, 67— appointed to conunand
the armies, 85, 86— his unsatis-
factory and tardy course on the
Potomac, 87, 88, 174, 283, 284,
312, 313— writes a letter indors-
ing an alder and abettor, 227—
put at the head of the Army
of the Potomac in the field,
283— bis great cause of failure,
311, 312, 326, 329, 335— his dila-
toriness, complaints, and Dn->
manly course, 315, 316, 329,
336, 343, 344, 345, 362, 363,
365, 364 — goes to the Penin-
sula, 316 — his performances
throughout the Peuiasular
campaign, 316 to 374 — writes
a wonderful letter to the Pres-
ident, 336, 339, 340— bis hand
in Pope's failure, 376, 379,
380 — again in command on the
Potomac, 378, 382, 383 — his
course and close of his military
career, 379, 380, 3S3, 364, 3S6,
366, 387, 366, 3^, 390, 391, 992—
seeks repose, 394 — views of
him, 394, 396, 396, 397, 899,
400— nominated for the Presi-
dency, 604.
Patteioon, Gbnbral BoBKar— at
the head of the Pennsylvania
troops, 10— his failure, 11, 12,
13,23.
Peace —'efforts for, 488, 489, 490,
«1, 533, 634, 636, 637, 638, 639,
540, 541 — terms of, on each
Bide, 490, 492, 493, 636, 641—
the Copperheads on, 493— the
rebels on, 495, 496, 497, 641, 642.
Polk, Bishop Leonidas— in com-
mand on the Miseippi, 104—
his death, 554.
Pope, General John— his feats in
Miseonri, 102 -~ his brilliant
operations on the Hiaaiaeippi,
284, 285, 286— overdrawn by
Halleck, 302— takes command
of the army in Viipnia, 876—
ov Google
703
hia KchleTements and fBllnre,
S76, 377, 378, 379, 380. 381.
Price, General Bterting— in the
battle of Wilson's Creek, 92,
93 — re-entera Miseoari, 96 —
captniea a large Union force
at Lexington, 98 — driven out
ol the State, 102 — again in
Hioeoari. 446.
Bebklb — their quarrels, 28, 84,
802, 325, 560— put down their
dogmae of State lUghta and se-
ceasion, 60, 76— their organized
government, its conrae, 73,
74 — their foreign agents ar-
rested, 177— their views of the
Emancipation Proclamation,
263,264— their praying, 297—
their generalship, 26, 27, 63,
301, 302, 342. 377— again set out
for Independence Hall, 377—
their conrse as to negro sol-
diers, M6, 448 — morder the
negroes at Fort Pillow, 448—
their naval pretensions and
achievements, 450, 462, 463,
454 — their views of the restora-
tion of the Union, 494, 495, 496,
467 — gather their foreSa under
Lee and Johnston, 548— their
last desperate efforts, 668, 569,
670.
RepnblicBna— their defeat at the
polls in 1862, 206— their snc-
cesses the following year, 227,
228 — their intentiona as to
slavery when Mr. Lincoln be-
came President, 229, 230— their
West Virginia mistake, 281—
still have a majoTity in Con-
gren, 456— malcontents among,
and their evil machinations,
498, 499, 600.
Kchmond—becomee the seat of
the Rebellion, 74, 76— its im-
portance, 311, fi66— Grant aits
down before it, 658 — its final
sturender and downfall, 568.
Rosecrans, General Wm. S.— snc-
ceeds Mcaellan in West Vir-
ginia, 88 — whips the rebels at
Corinth, 303— Buperaedes Bnell,
306 — at Mnri reesboro, 306,
423— whipped at Chickamanga,
431, 432— supeiaeded,4 "
to Uiasouri, 446.
Scott, Osnebai. WmrrKLD — Ms
plans for the three months'
men, II — gives Patterson a
task, 12— opposes the plan of
attacking the rebels at Hanas-
sas, 13, 14.
Sel&^neas— what it b and isnot,
604,606.
Seward, Wm. H. — snccessfnlly
condncts the Trent Case, ISO,
181— reviews American affairs,
204, 205— hie hand in the Navy,
451~'hi4 letter on the Mexican
project and the peace efforts,
636— bla standing with and e«-
timate of Mr. Lincoln, 684, 686,
686.
Seymonr, HoraUo— elected Goy-
vemor of New York, 206-hi8
riotous speeches, 210, 211 —
writes to the President to stop
the draft, 218— his subsequent
condnct, 217.
Sherman, General W. T.— at first
Bull Sun, 84— St Shilnh, 294—
pursues the fleeing rebels, 30O —
at Vickshnrg, 303, 425, 426— at
Chattanooga, 436, 437— goea to
the relief <rf Bomride, 438—
Grant's view of him, 648— his
ov Google
march from ChatUnooga to
Atlanta, 640, 560, 661, 562-hi8
battles around Atlanta, 663,
654— hie inarch to th« aea, 562—
marches into North Carolina
665, 666— meets President Lin-
coln and General Grant, 666—
hie negotiationa with Johtuton,
■ 669, 570.
Sheridan, General Pliilip— in
command of the cavalry in Vir-
^nia, 667 — dears the Shenan-
doah Valley, 664 — whips and
outgenerals Lee, 668.
Shields, General James-rlnsalted
by Mary Todd, wants blood,
hia escape, 666, 666, 660, 661.
Slavery— difficulty with at the
onteet of th« war, 62, 66, 67—
General Butler's course with,
67, 68, 69— course of the Ad-
ministration with, 69, 70, 157,
161, 1«2, 166— in the army, 67,
69, 71, 165, 206— abolished In
the District of Columbia, 166,
167, 168— its offensive hold up-
on the District, 169, 170, 171—
the question of, too much for
many Northern men, 200— final
steps for its overthrow by the
President and Congress, 230 to
266.
Slaves — two contrary viewa as to
Ihem, 62, 63— their dviliiation
and religion, 64, 66, 66— de-
clared to be " contnbands,"
67, 71 — the losses of under
the Fugitive Act for twenty
yeais, 72.
Smith, £. Eirby— appears with
re-entorcementa at Bull Ron,
18- in Kentucky, 304.
Speed, Joshua F. — takes Lincoln
to Kentncty, 650— Mr. Lin-
coln helps him to correct his
<. «5t.
owneironeouB love v
75S.
Stanton. Edwin U.— oflera hia
reugnation, 688— his lamenta-
tion over the death of Mr.
Lincoln, 689. ■
States, Northern — views of their
people as to the first Bull Btin
and the conquest of the South,
IB, 23, 26— their dark days,
204 — Ute anti-war element of,
Boccesafal in the elections,
206— make a 4th of July effort
to posh forward the great work
of saving the country, 209,
210-mobB in, 210, 211, 212—
their loyal people carry the
elections In 1863, 228 — their
viewa of the Emancipation
Proclamation, 263, 254— pray-
ing of their people, 297.
States, Southern— viewa of their
people on the first Bull Run,
19, 20, 24, 26 — their cry of
" Forward to Washington,"
26— the faith of their people
in the " Lost Cause," 82 —
their attempts to extend slav-
ery outside of the United
States, 191.
Stephens, A. H. — goes to ne-
gotiate for peace, 641 — gives
up the rebel cause, 641.
Thomas, Ginkbal Gbobok H.—
fights the battle of Mill
Springs, 116— saves the army '
at Chickamangs, 431, 432 —
supersedes Roeecrana, 433— at
Chattanooga, 437— goes to Ten-
nessee to oppose Hood, 660—
whips Hood and pursues him
into Alabama, 560— his last
grand achievement, 60L
ov Google
1— itaeotine
si Govem-
ta evil work
) ItebellioD,
)i, 177, 178,
WnxH, GroKm— at the bead of
the Navy, his chancter, patri-
otiam, great eervicee, 116, 119,
123, 124, 178, 449, 460, 461—
thanka Wilkea, 178 — re«feta
Mr. Seward, 461. '
ov Google
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